New Beginnings
by mayzee
Summary: Set just after the kiss from Blue Bird, Jane & Lisbon coming to terms with the changes to their relationship and feelings for each other as a new case opens up old wounds for them both. My first fanfic, hope you enjoy, reviews appreciated. Rated T/M for some sexy scenes. Finally complete!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hope you enjoy my first foray into the world of fanfiction. Reviews are appreciated greatly.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Mentalist, the wonderful Bruno Heller does.**

New Beginnings

Chapter 1 – The Truth

Their lips parted and Jane whispered to her, 'I love you Teresa Lisbon', staring into her eyes, seeing right through her.

He leaned in to kiss her again but Lisbon gently pushed him back, motioning to the glaring TSA agent behind him. 'I think you're in enough trouble at the moment, you better not push your luck.'

'When do I ever push my luck?' he replied with faux indignation and a smile on his face.

But he sat down again obediently. Damn, makes a change for you to do as you told, she said to herself. Instead he took her hand in his across the table. They sat there for a moment, looking into each other's eyes, both of their minds filled with hopes and worries of what was going to happen between them from now on.

Jane cleared his throat, trying to regain his composure and said brightly, 'So, are you going to break me out of here?'

Lisbon looked away for a second to break the spell his eyes seemed to have caused on her. 'No, afraid not, Abbott's outside, he's going to take care of that. He said I could talk to you first though.'

'Good' was all he replied with his trademark dazzling smile.

She saw that the old Jane was back in control again, full of front and charm. She didn't mind for now and if she was being honest, it was easier talking to him when he was like this. The few occasions she saw the vulnerable side of Jane always made her feel tongue tied and she needed to talk to him clearly now.

'Jane, I'm still going to D.C. today.'

His jaw dropped, confusion raining over him. 'But you said-'

'Let me finish. First I need to talk to Marcus in person, he deserves that at least.'

Jane nodded sympathetically knowing that this was the correct response to give although what he wanted to reply was 'To hell with Marcus, he almost took you away from me.'

Instead he said, 'And second?'

'Hmm?'

'You said first you had to talk to Pike?' He hoped she hadn't picked up the note of disdain in his voice when he said 'Pike'.

'Oh right, yes.' She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. 'Well the thing is I need to go work in D.C. for a couple of weeks, just until they find someone to replace me.'

Jane got ready to object before Lisbon cut him off again.

'Jane, I think it will be a good thing, a couple of weeks to make sure we're ready for what we're getting ourselves into here, to make sure we're ready for that big a change.'

Jane replied evenly, 'I don't need another second Teresa, never mind two weeks.'

He paused, looking her fully in the eyes and added softly, 'I think we've wasted enough time.'

She saw the hurt in his eyes and wanted to take it away from him but resolved to remain strong. Even though he might think she was what he wanted and loved at this minute, he had acted hastily the previous night (not that it wasn't the most romantic gesture she had ever been shown) and perhaps he would change his mind again once given more time to think about it. Even after kissing him she still had doubts as to whether he truly meant what he said or if he had said it to just make her stay with him. She felt guilty as he had seemed so sincere, even telling her it was okay if she still wanted to go if it really was too late for him. But after a decade of him lying to her and everyone around her, she found it hard to believe this truth from him even still. So, she felt she had to do what was best for both of them, give them both time to breathe before embarking on something she knew once started she would never be able to walk away from.

Jane tilted his head, reading her thoughts and face as usual and said simply and quietly, 'You don't need to worry, I won't change my mind, Teresa.'

After a moment he added, 'But I understand if you need time, I'm definitely out of practice at this kind of thing and I'm certainly not going to be the easiest relationship you've ever had.'

He saw her blush slightly at the word 'relationship' which made him smile.

She smiled back, one eyebrow raised. 'Really? I'm surprised, I've always thought of you as a pretty straight forward honest person, not causing any trouble at all.'

They both laughed and the tension dissipated, their easy going banter established once again.

At that moment, Abbott walked into the room. Lisbon pulled her hand away quickly which made Jane smile even more.

'I think that cat's already out of the bag, Lisbon.'

She blushed again, wanting to simultaneously kiss and punch Jane at the same time, not for the first time and she was sure not for the last.

Apart from a tiny smirk at the corner of his mouth Abbott ignored Jane's comment and Lisbon's obvious embarrassment and asked Lisbon 'You all done here?'

'Yes, thanks for letting me talk to him first', she replied with her head towards the table.

'You explained about D.C.?'

She finally looked up at him and said 'Yes, he understands fully and is fine with it.' She shot Jane a 'don't start and make trouble' glance which, for once, he didn't.

'Okay then, you better get to D.C., Agent Lisbon.'

'Okay, thanks, and thanks for getting him out of trouble, I know what a pain he can be.' She shot another glare at Jane who was sitting smiling through the entire exchange.

Lisbon got up and Abbott took her seat. He opened up his briefcase, pretending to look for something to give them a moment.

'I'll see you in a couple of weeks' she said, smiling at Jane. 'Please stay out of trouble until I come back.'

'I'll do my very best Lisbon but I may be bored when you're not around and you know what happens then.' She shook her head and gathered her bags.

Just as she was about to go he took her hand again suddenly. She made to pull it away again as Abbott was sitting there but he wouldn't let go this time and pulled her down towards him, whispering in her ear again softly but sternly, 'I won't change my mind Teresa, I'll be waiting, I love you.' She gulped and pulled away, blushing profusely and almost tripping over her bags leaving the room.

Once outside, she breathed out deeply and knew in that instant that he truly loved her.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 – A Tale of Two Cities

The conversation with Marcus was as difficult as she had imagined. When he saw her at the airport he had brought her flowers and was grinning like the cat that got the cream. Her stomach churned and when he enveloped her in a hug she had to push him away. She had planned on telling him somewhere quiet but she couldn't look at the hope and desire in his eyes for a moment longer.

'Marcus, stop, please' she said, pulling away from him.

'Sorry, I know you're not keen on public displays of affection, but I guess I can't help it', he replied giddily. He went to take her in his arms again but this time saw the look of pain on her face and stopped.

'What is it, Teresa, what's wrong?'

'I'm sorry but I can't marry you', she replied with tears coming down her face.

He was taken aback for a second but then recovered slightly.

'That's okay, you're here now, that's all that matters, we can take things as slowly as you like, no pressure at all.'

She was so used to not having to explain her thoughts to Jane; it was strange having to spell something out to someone else. She took a deep breath and said, 'I think we better go and talk somewhere alone.'

They went back to his hotel room; thankfully he hadn't found a place for them to live just yet. She told him everything about accepting his proposal because she was mad at Jane to him arriving on the plane and telling her to loved her. The least she owed him was the truth. He sat for a moment speechless.

'Marcus, I'm so sorry I hurt you, I never meant for that to happen.'

He sat there nodding for a moment then looked at her with glistening eyes.

'Are you sure?' he asked hoarsely.

'Are you sure you want to be with him? After everything he's put you through?', a touch of anger in his voice now.

She nodded simply but he hadn't finished.

'So, you want to be with a man who left you worried sick for six months pretending to have a nervous breakdown, a man who got you suspended and fired from your job all so he could have his revenge with no thought for you in the process?'

'It wasn't as simple as that-'

But he carried on, his voice gaining strength. 'A man who once he got his revenge left you for two years with no career and his mess to clean up, is that really the man you want, Teresa?'

'I love him' was all she said in reply, shrugging her shoulders.

He stood up and looked down at her, still so much in love with her but knowing that it was over between them.

'Can you answer me one question, Teresa?' he asked quietly, sitting back down beside her.

'Of course, anything', she whispered back.

'Did you do all this just to make him jealous, to make him see you at last?', his dark eyes looking into hers.

'I hope not' she replied as honestly as she could.

She had thought about that on the plane, was Marcus just a nice distraction from Jane or had she planned something more deliberate without even realising it herself. She certainly liked it when she noticed the first glint of jealousy in Jane's eyes when she was arranging a date with Marcus on their way to interview someone. Is that why she kept seeing him, diving into a relationship with him far too quickly. She really hoped it wasn't but couldn't discount the notion and certainly over the past few weeks she was more interested in seeing Jane's reactions to the changes in her personal life than she should have been if she was truly in love with another man. Perhaps she had been around Jane's games for so long she had started to play one herself, hurting Marcus in the process. She would blame herself for that for a long time but at least she was trying to be honest with him and herself now.

* * *

The first couple of days back to Austin, he felt out of sorts. His ankle was still a little sore and he found himself not being able to concentrate on reading any sort of book, helping out on cases just to keep his mind busy. 'Grumpy' was how Cho had put it and he supposed he was right. All his thoughts were filled with Lisbon and what she was getting up to in Washington. She had phoned him of course after she spoke to Pike and he was relieved to hear that it was finally over between them but talking on the phone with her just wasn't enough, not any more. He found himself just staring at her desk and picturing her there, feverishly completing ridiculous paperwork as usual with a burrowed frown and total concentration. He smiled at the thought and his heart skipped.

'How had this happened?' he asked himself at least ten times a day.

When he arrived at CBI, he was a broken man, which was obvious to anyone seeing him for the first time. The first time he met Lisbon she learned of his need for revenge and, for most people at CBI at that time, thought that that was only thing that was important to him. In fact, when anyone had asked him that same question, he would have said the same and in fact did believe it himself for many years. Even when Lorelei mentioned that he did the job partly because he was in love with Lisbon. He was surprised she said that at the time but had banished any such thought of it being true to the back of his mind to concentrate on his quest.

Looking back now though, he realised Lisbon saw something in him no-one had ever seen before. She saw in him a use for his ability (he thinks she called it a 'gift' back then, a term he wasn't comfortable with) beyond conning people. She had somehow come up with a way for him to begin making up for some of the pain he had caused some people in the past, a way to help get justice for others. The first time he unmasked a killer he smiled at his triumph, the first genuine smile he had in over a year and the first time he hadn't pretended to be something he wasn't in front of an audience. She had asked him to read the people in the room that day and for some reason he still didn't understand looking into her emerald eyes he couldn't say no to her. He never told Lisbon this but when Minelli first offered him the job, he asked immediately if he would be working with Lisbon and it was only when Minelli said that he would that he accepted the job. He had surprised himself when he asked that question but there was something even then, perhaps an earnestness in her eyes, that made him feel that he could grow to trust her. It would take some years, and perhaps it was still a work in progress some of the time, for her to feel the same.

His thoughts turned to Angela, the first love of his life, who had tried many times to get him to quit what he was doing for a living, but she hadn't given him many other alternatives with what he could do instead, the best she came up with was a job in sales but he had joked with her that was just changing the con from one bunch of suckers to another. He bit his lip when he thought about Angela now, the pain of her loss was still there of course but after killing Red John he focussed more on the good memories he had of her than the bad. He had thought of her and Charlotte often in South America in the beginning but as the months rolled on he began wondering how Lisbon was doing more and more. After six months, he wrote his first letter to her. He had hesitated for a few weeks before he sent it, telling himself that she was much better off now and with him gone she could finally find a life for herself and perhaps someone to love that truly deserved her. As he saw it she had wasted years of her life for him and his vengeance and the best thing he could do for her was to leave her in peace for the rest of her life. But he was Patrick Jane and altruism was certainly not one of his qualities so eventually in his selfishness and loneliness he sent it to her. He smiled as he wrote the first letter, picturing her raising an eyebrow or shaking her head as she read. He had thought about trying to explain his decision to leave but preferred to write happy letters imagining her smile than letters that would bring her to tears. He, of course, had no idea how she was or what she was doing as the letters were a one way street only, being ferried to Lisbon by his Carnie friends. This wasn't as frustrating as he initially thought it would be as instead he could imagine her somewhere happy and smiling and content, masking his guilt a little at leaving her suddenly like that.

But here he was now, daydreaming about kissing, caressing and stroking every tiny inch of his best friend and the only person he trusted in the world. What she had said in Miami was true; he had treated her abysmally many times over the years using the growing affection and then love he knew she had for him to get his way. It was something he was profoundly ashamed of now and he hated himself for putting her through so much pain and grief. But at least she had given him the chance now to try and make up for some of that, he told himself. He was still afraid of letting go fully to another person but he would try to let go for her, to make her laugh as much as possible and to make her feel happy and safe.

He'd known for some years how she felt about him but had always given him the respect to never voice it, perhaps knowing that it would make him pull away from her and end their friendship and partnership in most likelihood. She had come close to telling him a couple of times he thought but he would either change the subject or she would. However, without him even realising it, he had fallen in love with her too. Somehow she had managed to tunnel under the defences he had built to protect himself from ever having to feel another devastating loss in his life.

His cell phone rang and jolted him out of his thoughts.

He smiled when he saw the screen and answered cheerily, 'Hey honey, how are you today?'

'Honey?' she replied sarcastically but he could hear the delight in her voice. 'Where did that one come from?'

'Just trying it out on you. So you have now vetoed babe, sweetheart, darling and beloved. I'm running out of terms of endearment for you, you realise.'

She laughed softly and his heart fluttered again. He really had to get a grip he told himself but knew he was already a lost cause.

'So, they found someone to take over from me and they're starting on Friday so I'll see you Saturday', she cheerfully announced.

'Saturday? Why can't I see you Friday if they start then?', knowing but not caring how desperate he sounded.

'Typical Jane' she thought, never satisfied, but thrilled by the impatience in his voice.

'I have to show him the filing system and update him on the current case load, Jane. It's going to take up most of Friday so I'll probably end up getting the red eye back to Austin Friday night. Besides I'd rather be bright eyed and bushy tailed when I see you again than exhausted after working all day.'

'Bright eyed and bushy tailed?' He smirked, 'And you're giving me grief for calling you 'honey'?'

They both laughed until Jane said 'Okay, Saturday it is then Teresa, I'll be over early so I can get a look at that bushy tail of yours.' After a moment he added, 'Pun intended.' They laughed again and he knew she was blushing. 'Yep', he said to himself hanging up, 'definitely a lost cause.'


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - Reunion

By the time Lisbon got back home to Austin it was after 2am. She was exhausted and just wanted to crawl into bed. She opened the door to boxes filling the living room that she had intended to send on to D.C. When she decided to move she was going to sub let her house but had cancelled this as soon as she had decided to stay. Marcus had said that she should sell her house but she wanted to hang on to it she had told him. She made some excuse to him about keeping it as an investment but thinking more clearly now she realised that the truth was she never wanted to leave Austin. Or, more precisely, she didn't want to leave Jane. 'Damn him', she said to herself, 'If he had just told me before I packed all this stuff!' She smiled, found the bedroom sheets and went to make up the bed.

When she got to the bedroom she noticed a small bunch of blue hydrangeas on top of her chest of drawers with an origami paper frog in front of them. She smiled widely, opened the paper frog and read the note inside:

_Hey, just a little welcome home gift. If you're not too tired call me when you get in._

_P.S. I got a few groceries in for you so I can make you breakfast tomorrow when I come over._

_P.P.S. Can't wait to see you._

_P.P.P.S. It's Jane by the way in case you are accustomed to other men breaking into your house to leave you gifts._

She was still smiling when she walked over to the fridge where there was milk, eggs (naturally, she thought), bacon, sausage and strawberries. In the cupboard there were pancakes, bread and a mixture of muffins as well as her favourite coffee and three types of tea.

She picked up her phone and rang Jane.

He picked up on the first ring. 'Hey Lisbon, you're home?'

'Hey yourself. You know I could have you arrested for breaking and entering?' she teased.

'But what court in the land would convict me for such a romantic gesture?'

'Isn't that the same defence you used for boarding that plane?'

'Well it worked out so well that time I thought I'd use it again.'

She laughed softly before replying, 'I guess it worked out okay.' She paused and added, 'You know you must be intending to spend a lot of time here stocking three boxes of tea, it's a little presumptuous isn't it?' she joked.

'You can never have too much tea around Lisbon and once you get me there you may never want me to leave' he replied, grinning.

'Oh, really? You think so, eh? Well I may just surprise you and retract my invitation.'

He pretended his phone was breaking up. 'So...r..y..Can't...he...yo...'

She laughed again and muttered 'Jackass'

'Well I guess I better let you get some sleep, I'll see you in the morning?'

'I guess so. I mean there's no point locking the door is there? You'll just pick the lock again.' She paused and added softly, 'I've missed you.'

'I've missed you too, Teresa, I love you.'

'Me too. See you tomorrow, Jane.'

As he put the phone down he smiled at her still using his surname and tried to sleep.

* * *

Lisbon had found sleep hard to come by too and ended up getting up after two hours to unpack boxes. She had finished most of them by 6.30am when her phone rang.

'Hey, you up yet?' he said casually.

'Hey, um, yes, what are you doing up at this time?' she countered, a little afraid he was already at her door when she had her oldest clothes on, her hair tied up and was sweaty from unpacking.

'Well I couldn't sleep so I thought I may mosey over there if you're up anyway, sunrise was at 6.14am today so it is technically morning.'

'Okay, just give me a half hour will you, I've been unpacking boxes and-'

'...And you don't want our first date to be marred by your awkwardness in me seeing you in an overly large sweatshirt and sweat pants?'

'Are you spying on me?' she asked suspiciously, looking out the window. And had he just said 'date'?, her stomach beginning to knot.

'No' he laughed. 'You know Teresa I don't care how you look.'

'Really! Well that's nice to hear!' she retorted laughing.

'You know very well what I mean but I will be over in thirty minutes if that makes you happy.'

'Okay, see you then.' She hung up and rushed to the shower.

She was just finishing her light makeup, her hair still damp, when the doorbell rang precisely thirty minutes later. She wondered if he'd been standing outside her door watching the time. At least he didn't pick the lock this time.

He arrived in a new dark blue three piece suit, freshly shaven and a dazzling smile on his face and took her into his arms as soon as she opened the door.

'Oh, I've missed you' he spoke into her hair and it reminded her of when they had met again at the FBI office in Austin after two years apart.

'I've missed you too' she muttered and they both held on for a long moment.

Lisbon could feel the beginning of a tear of joy and pulled away gently, the emotion of seeing him again a little too much for her. This time, though, it was far different to their first meeting at the FBI. Now he held on to her and kissed her lips gently, just as he had in Miami. She reciprocated and couldn't help herself pull him closer, her hands round his neck and then moving her fingers through his hair. He pulled her in and moved his hands from her back, one circled around her waist and the other under the back of her neck, cradling her head and massaging her hairline, their kissing becoming deeper and more passionate.

Finally, they took a breath, looked at each other and laughed at how carried away they had become within a minute of seeing one other.

Jane was the first to speak. 'Well, I suppose we should ask each other if we're ready to be in a romantic relationship or now we've had two weeks to think about it whether we've changed our minds?' he asked sarcastically, grinning.

Lisbon smiled back, blushing, 'God, I'm sorry Jane, I had planned on playing it cool as well so as not to freak you out. I can only put my behaviour down to your new suit.'

'Well, if that's the case then I think I'll go out and order ten more.'


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4 - The ring

After Jane made breakfast for them both Lisbon insisted on doing the dishes.

The conversation at breakfast revolved around cases they had worked on while apart, work stuff they had talked easily about for years and they both enjoyed the familiar discussions where Jane caught her up on some of the outrageous plans he had concocted to catch criminals in the last two weeks while Lisbon raised her eyebrows and told him how bad those plans were.

As she cleared up, Jane watched her from the kitchen table, a mug of tea in his hand. He would have to invest in a nice teacup and saucer to keep here, he thought. She had the same look of concentration on her face scrubbing plates as she did at work reading case files. She moved quickly around the small kitchen working efficiently. He smiled when she had to stand on her tiptoes to put the plates away in the higher cupboards, catching a glimpse of her back as her t-shirt rode up as she moved her arms up. He started to fantasise about kissing the small dent in the middle of her back but as he tilted his head he saw her bite her lip and a moment of worry crossed her face. He realised she was looking for a way to ask him as he glanced down at the now ringless finger of his left hand. She was having trouble finding the words so he spoke first.

'Why haven't you asked me about it?' he said to her back.

She turned around to him, tried to bluff him, asking brightly, 'Ask about what?'

He smiled, his eyes saying, 'really, you're still trying to kid me after all these years?' like he had a thousand times before. He glanced down at his left hand to make his point.

She shook her head and looked away from him, pretending to wipe the kitchen counter. 'To be honest Jane, I didn't know what to say.' She turned back to him. 'You know I would have never asked you to take it off, or, at least, not for a long time anyway if this even works out.'

He nodded. 'I know that Teresa but it was hardly the right thing to keep on wearing it was it?' After a moment, he asked, 'And what do you mean by 'if' this works out?'

'What do you mean? We've just started this and we don't know what's going to happen further down the road.'

'Well', he said, standing up in front of her and touching both her arms with his hands softly, 'No matter what happens in the future, I can hardly wear the ring one woman gave me when I've fallen in love with another.' He leaned in and kissed her gently.

'I...guess not' she replied quietly. She pulled away from him, turned around and picked up the cloth again.

'That's got to be the cleanest kitchen counter I've ever seen Lisbon, you should get some silver out while you're at it' he smiled. She put down the cloth but still had her back to him.

He stood behind her touching her arms again. 'I'm sorry if I freaked you out, am I moving things too fast? You know there's no stopping me once I decide on a course of action.'

She turned to face him, tears in her eyes. 'I just never thought I'd hear you say those words or take your ring off. Not for me. Not for us. It's just a little overwhelming that's all. I guess it's just sunk in that this is really happening between us.'

He could see the fear in her eyes, a fear matched by his own. 'I'm petrified too, you know. You know I put on bravado but you know how scary this is for me' he replied honestly.

She nodded. 'It's just that if this doesn't work out Jane, what are we going to do? You're my best friend and I couldn't bear to ever lose that', tears streaming down her face now.

He looked deep into her eyes, wiped her tears with his fingers and pulled her close. 'Well we just have to make sure we don't fail at this then, we both have too much to lose.'

After a moment he smiled. 'Besides, you've put up with me for twelve years through the worst times of my life, what makes you think dating me is going to be worse than that?' He paused, grinning as he saw her relax a little and asked 'Am I that bad a catch?'

She laughed softly and nodded. 'That's true, how much of a bigger jerk could you turn out to be as a boyfriend than as a work partner?'

'Time will tell Lisbon, time will tell' he smiled, pulling her close again.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Thanks for all your kind reviews, I'm really enjoying writing this and think I've become a little Jisbon obsessed!**

Chapter 5 – One-upmanship

It was a nice day so Jane suggested they go for a walk in the afternoon. They went for an ice-cream in a park nearby where they sat on a bench and people watched for a while.

He saw her shoulders relax and she smiled, enjoying the sun on her face.

'Feeling better now?' he enquired.

'Yes, much better thanks. This was a good idea.'

'Well, I do have them occasionally you know, Lisbon.'

'I suppose you do...occasionally.'

He put his arm around her shoulder and to his surprise she leaned her head on his, still eating her ice-cream.

He closed his eyes and committed this moment to his memory palace. It had been a long time since he had felt so...what was the word, he thought...peaceful? content? happy? Perhaps it was a mixture of all of these.

Lisbon finished her ice-cream but kept her head on his shoulder, moving her hand tentatively to his chest, playing with the buttons on his vest. His face didn't react but took her hand and held it there, rubbing small circles into its palm.

They sat like this for a few minutes. Jane still had his eyes closed when Lisbon first glanced up and for a moment she thought he had fallen asleep.

'You know, it's rude to stare, Lisbon' he said, still with his eyes closed.

'I was just thinking we should get back, it's getting near dinner time.'

He opened his eyes. 'I hope that's an invitation.'

'If you like but the best you're getting is takeout, I'm not exactly a gourmet chef.'

'Don't I know it, it must have taken me five years to teach you how to make me a proper cup of tea.'

She kissed him gently, moving her hand through his blond curls. He kissed her back, at first gently, then harder and deeper until she gasped a little as his hand began to touch the bare skin under her t-shirt. All at once, he stopped suddenly, grinned and sat back on the bench, pleased with himself.

She sat with her mouth open for a moment, not quite sure at first what had happened. Then she realised. She wasn't going out with a normal guy like Marcus any more, she was dating Jane. And just because they were dating now it didn't mean he was going to stop playing his childish mind games or take any chance to embarrass her.

'Well if you carry on like that it might be another five years before I make you another' she said sternly, getting up from the bench. 'Come on, let's go, and just for that you can pay for the pizza.'

'Just for what, what did I do?' he asked innocently, hands in the air, smiling.

* * *

After pizza, Jane retired to the couch, sprawled out, threw off his shoes and turned on the TV. Lisbon stood looking at him from the other side of the room and shook her head.

'Comfortable, are you?' she asked.

Jane ignored the sarcastic tone. 'Yes thanks, I must say you have a very comfortable couch, Lisbon.'

'Well I'm so glad it meets with your approval' she replied in the same tone as before.

'Aren't you going to join me? Or are you afraid you won't be able to control yourself in this close a proximity to me?'

At that moment she hated that he could read her so well but Lisbon loved a challenge so she marched over and lay down on the couch in front of him.

He put one arm around her shoulder and the other began stroking her hair.

'So what are we watching?', hoping it was something she could become engrossed in to block out Jane's soft touch.

'Documentary about polar bears' he replied, getting more comfortable and moving the hand from her shoulder to across her waist, making soft sweeping gestures across her t-shirt. Of course. She wondered what his fascination with wildlife programmes was all about. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath as his hand caressed her stomach and answered 'Great.'

'Did you know that all polar bears are left-handed, or I guess that should be left-pawed?' he asked, moving her hair back from her shoulder with his free hand and began to kiss her neck gently, all the while still watching the TV.

'Fascinating' she replied, her best poker face on as his light kisses made her tingle all the way to her toes. Two can play that game, she thought. She moved her body closer into him and took the hand from across her waist and began kissing the tips of his fingers lightly, holding it closer to her breasts. After a few moments she detected Jane's breathing become quicker as he began kissing her neck with more intensity now, moving his lips back and forward to her ear, the documentary no longer holding any interest for him.

She closed her eyes and smiled. All of a sudden she jumped off the couch, leaving Jane surprised and confused.

'What the hell!' he gasped, sitting up.

She grinned jubilantly. 'You see you only think you can read me like a book, Patrick, I always told you that you don't know me as well as you think you do!'

After a moment he recovered slightly and looked at her. 'Well, I'm glad after all these years we're finally on first name terms, Teresa.'

'Sorry' she said laughing, sitting back down. 'But it served you right after what you did to me in the park.'

'I never realised what a spiteful person you could be Teresa Lisbon, I'm appalled, just appalled' he replied, feigning hurt.

She laughed again and sat further back on the couch. He turned around and smiled at her, admiring how she had played him and realising that perhaps she was right, maybe she wasn't as predictable as he thought she was.

After a few minutes they lay back down together and began cuddling again but both knew that nothing more than that was going to happen that night as tiredness began to overtake them. Before they knew it they had both fallen asleep on the couch, the documentary about polar bears still running.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Warning, some sexy scenes ahead.**

Chapter 6 – The First Time

Jane woke up at 5.30am and looked down to find Lisbon asleep with her head on his chest and his arms around her. He couldn't remember the last time he had slept for so long. He reached over to the coffee table with his left hand and used the remote there to turn off the TV. She made a muffled sound and moved a little but soon settled back with her right hand across his stomach. He carefully moved her hair away from her face and studied her. This was a rare occasion for him, to see Lisbon so still like this. She looked at peace with herself and everything around her, so different to the intensity and impatience she sometimes displayed at work. He sighed heavily, overwhelmed by his love for her and couldn't help but plant a gentle kiss on her forehead. She stirred again and moved her right hand to his chest. He took her hand and kissed it tenderly. She made a small contented sigh and he smiled. Then he wondered if she thought she was lying next to Pike and a pang of jealousy hit him. He stopped and looked down at her again, trying to read her sleeping face. At that moment she opened her green eyes and smiled at him.

'Morning' she said sleepily. 'I thought you said it was rude to stare.'

For once in his life he couldn't think of a clever retort and instead merely kissed her lips gently. She smiled back at him, opening her mouth and kissing him back. He drew her in and kissed her harder, his right hand at her waist, gradually moving her t-shirt higher so he could feel the bare skin of her back. She breathed heavily and then moved apart from him for a second.

'This better not be another wind up' she muttered quietly. 'If it is, I'm going to punch you in the nose then shoot you.'

Jane smiled back and responded by pulling her close again and kissing her harder still, moving his lips expertly from her lips to her neck to her ear and moving his right hand further up her back, leaving her in no doubt that he was obviously not playing some game this time. She, in turn, began opening the buttons of his vest and then moved on to the buttons of his shirt, both now kissing each other breathlessly and urgently.

She moved so she lay on top of him, the feeling of how much he wanted her driving her on, kissing his neck and then pulling him up on his elbows, her lips entwined with his. She sat astride him and pulled him closer, removing his vest and shirt eagerly, stroking his back and kissing his chest. He moaned gently at her touch on his bare skin, the new sensation making him feel lightheaded. Their kisses intensified and he pulled her t-shirt over her head, marvelling at the sight in front of him for a second. He looked at her nervously, her smile encouraging him to move one hand tentatively to a breast, the other around her waist. He grew breathless at its feel against his fingers as he lightly touched it its roundness before squeezing it harder, glancing at her eyes to check she was as turned on as he was by the feel of it in his hand. He moved forward so his lips could kiss it through her bra, his tongue licking it and his teeth beginning to bite gently on it. He felt emotions stir within him that he had not felt in so long and his mind cleared of everything apart from the heady feeling he was experiencing. She threw her head back and lightly scratched his back at his contact and gasped again. More confidently, he moved the hand from her waist to her bra, released the clip and removed it.

A few minutes later, suddenly she was on her back, Jane's kisses raining down on every part of her body and she was momentarily breathless at the total abandon in his desire. She knew Jane was relentless once on a mission and for once she was thrilled by his obsessive nature. For a few minutes she tried to regain her bearings but his deft hands were all over her now, removing any remaining clothes from her, kissing, touching, licking and caressing her persistently. After a few minutes more, she couldn't control herself any longer and let her body explode with his touch, a little embarrassed by how quickly it took over her. Afterwards he slowed down a little, his kisses gentler, allowing her enough time to recover where she was finally able to take a deep breath. She reached for him and took his face in her hands, burying his lips in a long deep kiss, moving him back on the couch roughly so she was on top of him again. She reached down and opened his trousers and he tilted his head back and moaned quietly whispering her first name repeatedly at her touch as she removed his clothes. Once they were both naked he pulled her up closer to him again, the kissing between them becoming more passionate again until they made love for the first time.

Afterwards they lay there on the couch, their bodies intertwined, naked, sweaty and breathless.

Finally Jane spoke in a bright but still a little breathless manner. 'Oh good morning to you too, Teresa. Yes, it is indeed rude to stare but when you're looking at something as beautiful as you first thing in the morning it's difficult not to.' He looked down grinning at her naked form and planted a kiss on her lips.

Lisbon was immediately self-conscious and pulled the throw from the back of the couch over them both, blushing.

'Do you really think I haven't already stored that vision in my memory palace?'

After Lisbon punched him in the arm she lay with his arms around her, her head back on his chest.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7 – Feelings

They lay together silently for a few minutes, Jane's arms around her, moving his fingers in small circles gently over her shoulder until Lisbon asked quietly, 'Are you...okay?'

He looked at her quizzically, his fingers stopping for a second. 'Okay?' he asked, tracing his fingers on her skin again. 'I thought it was pretty obvious I'm more than okay, Teresa, I hardly made a secret of the fact did I?' he said, blushing and laughing.

She shook her head blushing herself now, trying to find the right words. 'I don't mean that, I mean...'

After a moment of confusion he asked in a mocking tone, 'Oh...you mean...emotionally?'

'Well...yes...I mean, I know you've made love since your wife died but you said it didn't mean anything to you at the time and I guess I'm asking...' her words trailing off.

'If it was different this time?' he asked seriously.

'I guess', she replied softly.

He moved his hand to her chin and moved her face so she looked up at him.

Instead of answering her question he asked one of his own. 'Why does it still bother you that I did that?', neither of them needing to say Lorelei's name.

Lisbon took a deep breath, trying to form the words. 'I guess because it was just so much of a shock for me at the time. I had been so used to seeing you as someone who had built up so many walls to protect himself from feelings even close to that I was surprised when you let someone in, get close to you like that, even if it was just to get to Red John.'

He looked down at her again. 'And you wanted it to be you I let in first, not her' he said gently, knowing the words would hurt but needing to say them.

She pursed her lips and looked away from him again, her head back on his chest and her eyes filling up. 'You've known for years how I've felt about you, haven't you?' she asked quietly.

He held her closer and kissed her forehead and whispered, 'Yes...and I'm sorry it took me so long to get here.'

'You still haven't answered my question, is it different...with me?'

'I haven't answered it because it's a stupid question. You know very well it's different with you. But if you need it spelling out then I will', he replied, slightly annoyed he had to explain himself.

'What Lorelei and I did bore no resemblance to what just happened between me and you. Lorelei and I had sex, yes, and because it was the first time that had happened since Angela died you were probably somewhat right at the time. Because of that I did develop some feelings for her. But don't think those feelings are anything like the feelings I have for you. You know that, Teresa, I love you, I never loved her, and it's as simple as that.'

She saw he was still annoyed and smiled up at him. He shook his head, softened and returned the smile, caressing her face.

'No need to blow a gasket Jane, I only asked. A simple, 'Of course it's different with you' would have sufficed. And did you just say I was actually right about something too? This really is a special day, isn't it!'

He smiled again and shook his head. 'Am I ever going to win with you woman? First you tell me you want the truth from me and now you're saying I'm over-sharing? And I only said you were probably somewhat right.'

'You really are out of practice at this kind of thing, aren't you?' she replied sweetly.

He held her closer, smiling fully now. 'Yes, and I'm starting to wonder if it's worth it, to be honest', beginning to nibble her ear.

'Is that supposed to be my queue for me to show you it's worth it?'

'At last you're reading my mind, Lisbon.'

'Well, okay then, if I have to I guess' she beamed. 'But let's go to the bed, there's more room.'

They moved to her bed where they made love again, longer and slower than the first time, each beginning to understand what the other wanted and needed from each other.

They were both sleeping when Jane's cell phone began to ring in the living room.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Warning, a few sexy scenes at the beginning.**

Chapter 8 – The Tattoo

Lisbon woke first, her eyes glancing left to a naked Patrick Jane asleep beside her, covered from the waist down by a thin bed sheet. She grinned and thought of how often she had fantasised about this very sight. She had seen him sleep a thousand times but at work but he normally slept on his side, his back to the couch holding his arms in front of him. This time he was on his back, his head slightly tilted on his pillow facing her. His blond curls were tousled and a heavy stubble had begun to form on his face. Beads of sweat still dappled his face and chest from their earlier lovemaking.

She bit on her lip and thought of another fantasy she had, one she could finally fulfil. She began by dancing her fingers across his chest and moving closer so she could kiss it lightly, moving her lips up to his neck. He stirred next to her and absent-mindedly moved his right arm up so she could move closer. She moved on to his lips, at first gently kissing them then longer kisses as he began to stir and breathe deeper, moving his right arm around her waist. He opened his mouth allowing her to kiss him deeper again until he reciprocated drawing his left hand to touch her cheek. She reached down under the covers and heard him moan softly whilst she kissed him harder. After a few minutes, she moved the covers away and pulled herself on top of him, manoeuvring herself so that she sat asride him, making him inhale sharply. His hands were loosely on her thighs now and, for once in Teresa Lisbon's life, she thought of her own satisfaction before someone else's.

Meanwhile, Jane kept his eyes closed and concentrated on allowing her to completely fulfil herself as she moved rhythmically on top of him. Once he felt in control, he opened his eyes briefly to watch her. Her eyes were closed and she had the look of deep concentration she displayed at work when in the middle of some serious paperwork. He smiled at the thought and would never see her completing paperwork again without thinking of this moment, he mused to himself.

She was finally satisfied and fell off Jane back to her side of the bed. She was smiling over at him, a slight look of embarrassment on her face and he grinned back, moving towards her to take the opportunity fulfil his own craving.

Breathless, he fell back to his own side of the bed.

'You know we really should have done this years ago' he said, shaking his head, still catching his breath.

She turned to face him, a look of bemusement on her face. 'Oh really, you finally came to that conclusion, did you, took you long enough, didn't it?'

He looked at her and replied, 'Well, yes, I mean I was a much younger man then Teresa, I'm not sure I'll be able to match your high standards, I think I've already pulled a muscle in my side after just one morning with you.'

'I'd say you're doing okay for an old man with not much practice lately.'

'Just okay?'

'I think your ego is big enough without me massaging it any more for you.'

They both laughed and Jane took her in his arms again.

'You know I always knew you had a tattoo', he teased.

'Really? You noticed that, eh, so why haven't you ever mentioned that to me before now?'

'Well obviously I noticed it', he replied, winking. 'I was always trying to figure out what it was and where it would be, that I wasn't sure of. But obviously I knew it would be in a place not very many people get to see, you're not the type to have one on show to just anyone, you're much too private for that. I was right about that part.'

She laughed back. 'You're full of it, Jane. You just made that up, you had no idea and you can't stand that there was something about me you hadn't figured out.'

'Really! Are you doubting my powers of deduction once again? I would have thought you would have learned your lesson after all these years, Lisbon.' He thought for a moment then said 'Okay, if I can tell you when you got it done will that convince you?'

'Maybe', she replied smiling.

'All right then, it's a little faded over time so I would say you got it done in college, probably after some drunken episode with some classmates, maybe an end of term party or something like that, you probably all got one done at the same time, some sort of female bonding exercise I expect' he notified her.

She shook her head and then nodded. A look of triumph came across Jane's face. 'Actually, it was spring break but you're close enough.'

'Ah, spring break' he responded. 'So, why did you get a music note? Was it as simple as you and your little band mate friends all decided to get the same thing to commemorate some big band occasion?' he mocked. 'Please say no, Lisbon, because that's exceedingly boring if it's true', embracing her again, smiling.

As he said the words he felt her body tense against his slightly and knew instantly he had hit some type of nerve, had crossed over some kind of line. He was about to ask her what he had said wrong when she spoke first quietly, her head across his chest.

'Nothing like that, you'll be glad to know.' She paused, unsure whether to continue or not.

'You can tell me anything Teresa, you know that, right, you can trust me' he replied quietly, holding her close.

'I've just never discussed this with anyone before Jane, it's hard for me.'

He nodded. 'Well I recently got something off my chest and I have to say it was the best thing that ever happened to me, I would highly recommend it.' He looked down at her and smiled.

She smiled in return and bit her lip. 'I don't even know why I'm making such a big deal about this, it's only a damn tattoo, and I'm just being stupid.' She paused for a moment then continued, deciding that she had to start breaking down some walls of her own for him.

'I got it done because it reminds me of my mother.' She paused again then went on. 'When I was five or six the two of us began a tradition of sorts, I guess. Every Sunday we would go somewhere together for the afternoon, leave my brothers and father for a few hours. I think she was a little afraid of me becoming too much of a tomboy.' She laughed softly at the memory.

'Well imagine such a thing' Jane interjected quietly, smiling, rubbing his fingers up and down her arm, trying to relax her and coax her on.

She continued, smiling at reliving the happy memories now. 'Well, she loved music, didn't matter what type really, just loved it, she would often sing around the house and she even played a couple of instruments pretty well. So invariably our Sunday afternoons would revolve around going to see some type of musical event, from a symphony in a park to watching buskers for a few hours. We did it right up until she passed away.' She paused again and breathed hard, then went on. 'So, when I got to the tattoo parlour and they showed us the books with ideas in them, I just automatically went for the music note. Well, that's it really. I don't even know why I haven't told anyone that before, it's hardly a massive secret.'

'But it was for you and I appreciate you telling me' he said softly, pulling her up and kissing her gently.

'I meant to say thank you by the way, before' he whispered. His look turned serious and his eyes bored into hers. Lisbon was unnerved by the intensity in his eyes.

'You don't have to thank someone for sleeping with you' she teased, trying to deflect the seriousness of the look he was giving her with a joke.

But he didn't make a smart comeback this time. Instead, still staring into her eyes, he caressed her cheek and said softly 'Thank you for giving me a chance, giving us a chance.' She gulped and was trying to think of a response but he hadn't finished. 'I never thought I would be this happy again, that I would ever find someone else who makes me this happy.' A small tear formed on corner of his right eye. She found tears were coming down her cheeks too and they held each other close for a moment.

Jane wiped his tear away and tried to regain his self-control. 'I'm sorry, Teresa, I didn't mean to get so emotional.'

She looked at him smiling. 'Hey, you have nothing to apologise for.'

He looked back at her, smiling again. 'Well, that sure makes a change, doesn't it?'

He moved to get more comfortable and held his side for a moment, rubbing it.

'What's the matter?' Lisbon enquired, propping herself up on her elbow.

'I told you earlier, I think I've hurt a muscle', Jane replied seriously, still rubbing his side.

She laughed loudly then said seductively, 'Do you want me to rub it better for you?' coming closer to him.

He held up a finger warning her away. 'Are you kidding me? That's what got me into this predicament in the first place, control yourself woman, at least give me an hour to recuperate.'

'Well okay then, if that's the case, I'll take a shower in the meantime.'

She jumped out of the bed and headed into the bathroom. Jane smiled and thought to himself he might have to seriously think about going to the gym with Cho if he was going to keep up with her.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9 – The Matchmaker

When Lisbon got out of the shower she dressed in a pair of white jeans and a red sleeveless chiffon top. She walked into the living room, her hair still wet from the shower where she found Jane at her kitchen counter, whisking eggs in a bowl. He was clothed again with his shirt not tucked in and buttoned loosely.

'Hey, what are you making me? I'm starving', she asked him breezily.

He turned his head, looking at her quickly from head to toe and smiling appreciatively at her choice of outfit. It was nice to see her out of black from a change, he thought.

He turned his head back to put the eggs into a pan and answered her as she walked across to get a cup of coffee he had already brewed for her. 'Oh, I see, is that the way it's going to be now then? I thought you loved me for my mind but now you're more interested in my cooking skills.'

'Well, yes, and a few other skills you've shown me lately also', she replied as she planted a kiss on his cheek.

He smiled and felt a little awkward, unused to this blatantly sexy side of Lisbon. It was no wonder Pike fell hook, line and sinker for her within days if this was how she was with him, he thought to himself.

'So, what do you fancy then?'

She tilted her head and smiled suggestively, raising her eyebrows. 'I thought you were an injured man.'

'Get your mind out of the gutter, Lisbon, I meant to eat', turning his head back to his eggs.

'Whatever you're making is fine', she smiled, sitting down at the table to drink her coffee.

After a few minutes, Jane's cell phone rang on the table. She looked over to see Abbott's name flashing.

'It's Abbott for you', she said, raising the phone to Jane.

'Just leave it' he replied, his back to her, dishing out the eggs.

She turned back to the phone as it stopped ringing.

'Jane, there are eleven missed calls from him, you need to ring him back, you've obviously got a case.'

Jane smiled as he brought the dishes to the table. The authoritarian Lisbon was back in charge now.

'Really, you think? My, you really are an asset to the FBI with those fine detection skills.'

'I'm serious Jane, you need to ring him back. Now.'

'Don't worry I will, after we eat. Besides Dennis of all people should understand that we need a bit of time together', his fork tucking into his eggs.

'What do you mean Dennis of all people? Do you mean you've been talking to him, about us?'

'Of course, told him all about the wicked things we were going to get up to once you were back in Austin, he even gave me a couple of pointers', he smiled and winked at her.

'Stop it, what do you mean?', she asked again impatiently.

Jane put his fork down and looked at her. 'I just mean that he was playing matchmaker for us since you started going out with Pike, he kept going on at me about what I was going to do about it and telling me that Pike was going to take you to D.C. with him and asking me how I felt about that, those type of things. Oh, and he said I was conning myself into believing I didn't have any feelings apart from friendship for you.'

'Really! He was pretty on the ball, wasn't he?' She paused, thinking and added, 'That dinner at Il Tavolo Bianco, that was his idea, he was hoping that would do the trick?'

Jane nodded. 'I guess so, it almost worked too, before the owner came over for our order.'

'I remember, you asked me what I wanted to hear.'

'Yes, and you gave me an ambiguous answer I couldn't make any sense of.'

Lisbon thought for a second, beamed, and then looked down at Jane's cell phone. 'You should call him back, now', she said sternly handing the phone to Jane.

He took it off her and put it down on the table beside him, continuing to eat.

'Jane!'

'Oh now that you know he was matchmaking for us you've developed a soft spot for him.' He smiled and added, 'Lisbon, eat your eggs, they're getting cold. If someone's dead, they're still going to be dead after we finish eating.'

She looked at him and shook her head, beginning to eat.

'You know, I could turn my phone off and we could do something this afternoon instead, I'm pretty sure there'll be a band or singer playing somewhere.'

She looked at him confused for a second at the abrupt change in topic.

'Well, it's Sunday, isn't it? We could maybe start our own tradition, if you like', he said gently, looking into her eyes.

She looked back, a little choked. 'How is it that you can be the most hard-hearted man one minute and the kindest man the next?'

He thought for a moment, pushing his plate away and answered smiling, 'Just all part of my charm, I guess.'

'Phone Abbott.'

He shrugged his shoulders, picked up the phone and dialled, Abbott answering on the first ring.

'Hey, you were looking for me?'

Lisbon didn't hear what Abbott replied but saw Jane shake his head and roll his eyes. He was evidently getting a dressing down.

'Well, I was a little tied up this morning Dennis', he answered happily, looking over at Lisbon with a glint in his eye.

She shot him daggers back.

He went back to listening to Abbott again then nodded looking over at her. 'Yes, I'm with Lisbon now, I thought she wasn't starting work again until tomorrow but I'm sure she won't mind. Text me the address and we'll be there soon as we can, okay, bye.' Jane hung up the phone and looked over at her.

'Well, looks like the honeymoon's over, we have a case all right, college girl dead in her dorm.'

'He wants me there too? For a murder at a college dorm? Wonder why the FBI have been put on to it?', she asked getting up and putting the plates in the sink.

'Who knows, guess we'll find out', he replied, putting on his vest and jacket. 'I better go to my place to shower and change, I'll text you the details once I have them and see you there, okay?'

'Yes, no problem.'

She saw him to the door where they kissed again, long and tender, Jane's arms around her waist and hers around his neck.

He turned to go and she tapped him on the arm. 'You're going to behave yourself aren't you? I mean not embarrass me in front of everyone?'

'You mean I can't cop a feel at the crime scene?'

'Jane!'

'I'll behave, I promise, trust me', he said as he closed the door behind him.

She stood there for a second, knowing those two words normally meant trouble for her.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10 – Back to Work

Lisbon arrived at the campus first. She saw Abbott immediately, talking to Cho, a grim look on his face. Her stomach flipped and she realised how nervous she was to be back at work. The last day or so had been a dream but now she was back amongst her colleagues who must certainly have had plenty of thoughts about her change of mind and the progression of her relationship with Jane.

When she was in D.C. she had asked Jane if people were talking about them around the office to which his response was 'Meh, so what if they are? It'll be old news soon enough.' He wasn't concerned with such matters, of course, and probably enjoyed watching the tittle-tattle going on around him. But she felt self-conscious and embarrassed that her private life had become public knowledge and hated being the butt of such gossip. She took a deep breath, straightened herself and marched over to Abbott and Cho.

'Hey, what's up?' she asked evenly, nodding to Abbott and Cho.

'Hey, Agent Lisbon, welcome back, sorry I had to drag you here today. I know you're not supposed to start back until tomorrow but this is something you need to be in on', Abbott said sternly.

'No problem. Jane mentioned something about a dead girl, why are the FBI investigating?'

'We'll get to that, I need to talk to you about your personal situation first.'

Cho shifted uncomfortably and said 'I'll go round up the friends', obviously looking for a quick getaway, turning around and then back again saying to her. 'Oh, welcome back, Lisbon.' He turned again and she was face to face with Abbott.

She felt her stomach flip again, surely he wasn't going to stop her and Jane working together, why had he tried to get them together if that was the case, she wondered.

Abbott stood for a second looking at her before speaking, making her feel even more nervous.

'Well, I thought we should discuss the elephant in the room before he arrives', he said smiling a little, making her feel a bit better.

'You're not going to stop us working together, are you?' she blurted out, a little angrier than she intended.

He seemed surprised at her directness, smiled again, and then said 'No, I'm not. You two were already acting like a married couple around the office before this...development...so I would have split you up long before now if I had a problem with your closeness.'

'Jane may have had a problem with that if you had tried.'

Abbott nodded, conceding her point. 'True. To be honest, I'm hoping this new...arrangement...may help you keep him in line a little more', he said, eyebrows raised.

She smiled back, blushing slightly. 'You think? I wouldn't pin my hopes on that, sir, no offence.'

'Well, hope springs eternal, Agent Lisbon' he smiled back. 'Just don't let him talk you into too many crazy plans, okay, just because you're in love doesn't mean you have to blind, you're too good an agent to let him ruin your career...again.'

She nodded and decided to change the topic. 'So, this case then?'

Abbott exhaled, looking worried and replied, 'Yes. Let's wait until Jane gets here, I want to talk to you both about it together.'

Jane arrived about fifteen minutes later finding Lisbon back in work mode, dressed in obligatory black and standing at the front of the campus, evidently waiting for him.

'Hey' he said brightly as he got out of the car. 'Were you too afraid to talk to Abbott by yourself?'

She gave him a withering look. 'No, of course not, I've already talked to him but he didn't want to tell me anything about the case until you arrived so let's go', already walking back towards the college.

'What, no kiss first?' he asked, smiling.

'Don't even think about it, I thought you told me you were going to behave?'

'Is that what I said?'

'Jane, stop it. Abbott's already acting mysteriously enough. Why did he want to wait to talk to us both together about the case?'

'Who knows?' Jane replied happily, the two of them walking towards Abbott as he was motioning for them to come over. 'Maybe he wants to get a look at the sexual chemistry between us.'

Lisbon gave him another glare as they arrived at Abbott.

'Hey Dennis, so why the mystery, what's up?'

'Glad you've finally made time in your busy schedule to fit in a spot of work, Jane.'

Jane smiled widely and looked at Lisbon. 'Don't blame me, Dennis, it was all her fault, she wouldn't let me leave, believe me I tried.'

Lisbon closed her eyes, wishing the ground would open up. 'Jane, cut that out!'

'Finished now Jane, can we get to the case?' Abbott responded, unimpressed. Jane, still smirking, nodded.

'Okay, our victim is Kerry Matthews, a criminology student here, here's her class photo.' He handed over the photo to Lisbon, Jane looking at it from over her shoulder.

'Pretty girl' Jane said. He looked up at Abbott who was looking at them both for something else, perhaps recognition of the girl, Jane thought.

'Either of you know her?' he asked.

Lisbon was surprised and replied, 'No, I don't. Why do you think I would? Jane, do you know her?'

Jane's eyes were still on Abbott and there was now seriousness in them, the smirk disappeared from his face.

Lisbon saw the look and asked again, 'Jane?'

Jane came out of his trance and looked at her for a moment before he replied 'No, I've never seen her before either', before looking back at Abbott. 'What's going on here, Dennis? What are you not telling us?'

Abbott glanced down before pulling an evidence bag from his pocket. 'I just wanted to make sure there was no personal connection between either of you and the victim before I showed you this' he replied, handing the bag over to Jane. 'This was found stuffed inside her mouth.'

Inside the bag was a small piece of white paper, a red smiley face drawn on it.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Wow, can't believe the great response my little story is getting, thanks so much for all the lovely comments, they're spurring me on.**

Chapter 11 – Worry

Lisbon's eyes widened. 'What the hell!', looking at Abbott and then at Jane.

Jane's eyes were still focused on the smiley face on the paper, his face expressionless, the cogs in his mind whirling on overdrive.

'Thoughts, Jane?' Abbott asked, eyeing him with a mixture of suspicion and concern.

Jane didn't answer but continued to look at the face on the paper, memories flooding back to him that he thought he had finally put to rest.

Lisbon looked over at him, worried herself now, seeing the same Patrick Jane she used to see in the attic of the CBI building towards the end of his hunt, a mixture of sadness, anger and emptiness across his face. She hadn't seen his face like this since he had come back from the island and she wanted nothing more than to take him in her arms and hold him close.

Before she could say or do anything Jane spoke, his eyes still transfixed on the image in front of him. 'How was she killed?' he asked quietly.

Lisbon felt her stomach churn and prayed to god they weren't about to find another young girl gutted, looking at Abbott for a response.

'Looks like strangulation' he replied. Lisbon exhaled, feeling guilty at her relief.

Jane finally looked up and gave the evidence bag back to Abbott. 'Were her eyes open or closed?' he asked evenly now, his demons put to the back of his mind once again.

'Open, why?'

'Just that most people who strangle someone close the victim's eyelids afterwards, maybe because of feeling shame or guilt at what they've done. It's interesting that this killer didn't feel the compulsion to do that, obviously.'

'So, what does that tell us?' Abbott asked.

Jane shrugged. 'Guess whoever did this feels no remorse for their actions, it was perhaps a justified kill for them.'

Lisbon finally spoke again. 'Justified kill? She was a young girl going to college, what possible harm could she have done to warrant this?'

Jane turned his face towards her, a little surprised at her outburst. 'I'm not saying what they did was right, Lisbon, I'm just trying to look at it from their perspective.'

She nodded and looked back at Abbott. 'Is the body still in her room?'

'No, M.E. took it away for the autopsy.'

'Were there any signs of sexual assault?'

'Not so far, no, body was fully clothed, lying on her bed. She hadn't turned up for a lecture and according to her friends she never missed one so they went to her room to find her after class. They said if they hadn't seen her eyes staring up at the ceiling like that, they would have thought she was asleep.'

'Are there any cameras in the hallway?'.

'No, none present-'

'I need to see the room' Jane interjected.

Abbott looked at Lisbon, then at Jane and replied, 'Okay, go ahead.'

Jane started to walk off immediately and Lisbon called after him. 'Hey, aren't you going to wait for me?'

He turned his head and replied, still striding forward, 'No, you finish up here, I'll see you up there.'

Lisbon turned her face back to Abbott, unable to hide the anxiousness in her eyes.

'Is he going to be okay on this one?' he asked her, genuine worry in his tone.

'I hope so' she replied honestly.

* * *

Lisbon caught up with Jane in the corridor leading to Kerry's room. 'Hey Jane, wait up!'

He stopped and waited for her, smiled and asked her 'So, did Abbott ask you if I was about to crack up then?'

She looked up at him, her hand touching his arm lightly, eyes full of concern. 'He's not the only one worried about that.'

He looked down at her, took her other hand and said gently, 'I'm okay, Teresa, I was obviously a bit shocked earlier but I'm okay now. I promise.'

She looked up at him, unconvinced, but let it go for now. 'Okay then, let's go see her room.'

Cho was there when they arrived, removing her laptop. 'You guys up to speed?' he asked evenly.

Lisbon nodded. 'Creepy, right?'

'No doubt. I'm going to get this to Wylie, see if he can pull anything of interest off it', pointing to the laptop. 'Her friends are waiting to be questioned further, you want to take care of that?' he asked Lisbon.

She nodded and replied 'Sure.' It was still strange when Cho gave her an order but was proud of the agent he had turned out to be.

Jane was walking around the room, looking at photographs on Kerry's desk and the books in the bookcase, his mind formulating the type of person she was.

Cho was about to leave when he turned back, saying in a clearly uncomfortable manner, 'Lisbon, can I talk to you for a moment, outside?'

Lisbon was mildly surprised. Kimball Cho was definitely not one for heart to hearts. Jane smiled as she left the room.

'I believe you and Jane are a couple now, is that true?' he said in his usual monotone voice. Lisbon was more than surprised now and merely nodded in return, unsure of what to say. 'Okay then' he nodded. 'Then I guess I'm happy for you both.' He turned to go and added, 'I've told him if he hurts you again I'm going to break his kneecaps.' She smiled at his back as he was leaving, shaking her head.

She went to see the friends, introducing herself and taking a note of their names, warding off questions about Kerry and telling them she would be back soon to question them.

Lisbon re-entered the room to find Jane lying on the bed reading a text book called Serial Killer Psychology. She couldn't help but think this was ghoulish, considering a young girl had been lying there strangled a few hours earlier.

He didn't take his eyes off the book but asked her brightly, 'So, did Cho tell you about him threatening me with violence should I break your heart?' He sat up on the bed, smiling at her now, the book on his lap.

She smiled back. 'Yes, so you better behave yourself.'

She looked around the room now, a wistful look on her face.

'What is it?' he asked.

'I don't know, just thinking what a shame this is, a young girl with so much life in her.' She paused and added, 'I was hoping my first case back would be something more...normal, not something that would make us think of the past.'

He smiled up at her. 'Oh, so you wanted a run of the mill murder then?'

She looked down, shaking her head. 'You know what I mean.'

He put the book down, got off the bed, shut the door and took her in his arms, kissing her gently. She held on to him until he broke away, a little shaky despite his earlier promise that he was fine.

He went to the window and looked out, the old CBI Jane look back on his face. 'Did you know that part of the criminology course here has students studying Red John? I've just been reading about it. He paused then added, 'Looks like Kerry Matthews was writing a thesis on him, she had all the books where he's mentioned and the passages about him are highlighted.' He shook his head, hatred filling his face as he continued to look out the window. 'He would have been so pleased that he reached such notoriety' he said dryly.

Lisbon approached him, touching his arm again. It seemed to pull him out of his trance as his face softened looking at her. She thought for a moment at first then spoke. 'Really? I guess it's morbid fascination, yes, but it's probably no different to these kids than studying Jack the Ripper or Ted Bundy. They didn't know him, didn't see what he was capable of with their own eyes.' She paused, chastising herself for mentioning that, and then added, 'He's just another character in a book for them, Jane.'

Jane nodded, looking down. 'He was a character, all right' he replied wryly.

'So, do you want to interview the friends with me?', trying to focus his mind on something slightly less destructive than the memories flooding his mind now, a trick she had often used effectively on him at the CBI.

'No, you go ahead, I want to have some more time to look around here, I'll read your notes and see if anything pops out to me' he replied, his hands on her arms.

'Okay, then, I'll see you back at the office' she said, kissing him on the cheek. Something in him broke at the thought of her leaving him even for a short time and he pulled her back, kissing her softly, then deeper until she pulled away.

'Jane! Just because I'm feeling worried about you at the moment doesn't mean you get to take advantage of me!'

'That's a pity' he said, smiling, the joke enabling him to let go of her finally.

Before she left the room he said to her 'Ask them what they know about her family - parents, siblings, and so on. And ask them what she wanted to be when she graduated.'

'Okay, why?'

'Just trying to build up an image of her, that's all' he said brightly, turning his back to her, a worried look back on his face.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Thanks again for all your kind reviews, this one is a little heavy going, hope you keep reading, the humour will pick up again, I promise.**

Chapter 12 – Similarities

Lisbon arrived at the room where Kerry's friends were gathered. Michael Foster and Julia Myles were both in her criminology class and had found her body along with Laura Summers, who lived in the room next to Kerry's, who gave them the spare key she had.

They all still looked a little shaken so Lisbon began gently.

'You guys okay to talk now, about Kerry?' she said softly.

'Yes, we're okay, we just want to find out who did this terrible thing to her' Julia said, blankly looking ahead. The others nodded.

'Thanks.'

She then asked them all the routine questions she normally asked witnesses including what time they found her, if they moved anything in the room, where they were beforehand and if there was anybody they could think of that might do this to do and so on. Michael mentioned an ex-boyfriend she had broken up with a few weeks prior named Jake Henderson, Lisbon taking a note of his name to talk to later.

'Can you tell me anything about her family?'

Laura spoke first. 'Her family? I don't really know much about them to be honest. She didn't really talk about them much.' The others shook their heads too and shrugged their shoulders.

'Anything you remember her telling you might be useful' Lisbon said, trying to coax a reply.

Laura spoke again. 'Well, her parents are both dead, her mother died when she had just turned a teenager and her father a couple of years ago as far as I know. She didn't really speak about them. I got the impression that things hadn't been great between her and her father before he died.'

'What about brothers and sisters?'

'She has two younger brothers, I think. Will someone tell them what's happened?'

Lisbon nodded. 'Yes, don't worry, we're taking care of that.'

Lisbon began to feel a little uncomfortable, the similar background she had to Kerry a little unnerving for her.

'Did she ever tell you what you wanted to be, you know, after graduating?' she asked the room.

Julia replied, smiling a little now, 'All she ever wanted to be was a cop, that's the only thing she talked about. She was a straight A student, I always told her she could be anything, but her mind was set.' She realised her faux pas and said to Lisbon, 'Sorry, no offence intended.'

Lisbon nodded and smiled, continuing to write, a cold shiver going up her spine.

She continued questioning them for a little longer, finally giving them her card and telling them to call her should they remember anything else.

She turned to leave when Michael spoke. 'Do you mind if I ask you something?'

Lisbon turned back. 'Sure, what is it?'

'Did you really meet Red John, I mean Thomas McAllister?'

The others turned around. 'Michael!' Julia hissed.

Lisbon was taken aback by the question but then recovered, obvious anger in her face. 'Frankly, that's none of your business.'

Michael was shocked by her icy stare and fidgeted in the seat. 'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cause offence, it's just that we study about him in class and, well, you and Mr Jane have come up a few times in discussions. Well, Mr Jane mainly but I know your name too. I heard he was here as well today, I would have liked to have met him too, you know, to ask him about his feelings about him now he's dead, that type of thing' he said hurriedly.

Lisbon stood glaring at him. 'Let's be clear, Michael. Thomas McAllister was a monster the world is better off without, not some type of anti-hero you seem to think he was.'

Michael sat back in his chair, shaken but Lisbon wasn't finished with him yet. 'And if I hear you asking Mr Jane any of that crap, believe me, you'll be sorry.' Michael nodded feebly.

She went to leave then on a whim turned around again. 'Where can I find the criminology professor?'

'He should be just finishing another class now, lecture hall B' Julia replied.

Lisbon walked into the corridor and began to shake a little. She breathed out and went to see if Jane was still in Kerry's room.

Jane was walking back down the corridor as Lisbon was coming towards him. His smile turned to worry as he saw her anxious demeanour. 'I was just heading back to the office. I thought I was going to see you there? What's wrong?' he asked, his hand on her arm.

She relayed the exchange about McAllister to Jane, who kept his head down and nodded throughout.

'I want you to talk with the criminology professor with me, he must be the one filling their minds with this crap' she said angrily.

Jane looked up, seemingly unaffected and said almost cheerily, 'Okay, let's go.'

As they began to walk he stopped and looked at her. 'Hang on. What did they say about her family?'

Lisbon again relayed the information. This time, he looked straight at her then looked away, a distant look on his face.

'What is it Jane?'

Her turned back to her and replied, 'Probably nothing at all', hunching his shoulders.

He went to walk away again until she put her hand on his arm to stop him. 'Jane, tell me.'

He stopped and looked towards the floor again, rocking on his heels, trying to find the right words.

Lisbon spoke first, her own fear after meeting the students coming to the surface now. 'Do you think this case has anything to do with me, I mean personally? As far as we know at the moment, Kerry was pretty much the same person as me when I was her age, same background, same desire to be a cop, do you think she was murdered because of me somehow?', she asked him blatantly.

He turned to face her, a worried look on his face now. His words came out slowly as first, gaining speed as the concern behind them overtook him. 'I don't know Teresa, honestly. On its own I would have said no but with the Red John mark stuffed in her mouth and the way she died it all seems like too big a coincidence for it not to mean something too.'

Lisbon paused, thought for a second and said to him, 'The same way you killed McAllister.' It was the first time she had acknowledged to him what he had done that day. He never mentioned it in his letters to her and they had never directly discussed it since he returned.

He looked at her and simply nodded, his face giving nothing away.

'Did you leave his eyes open?' she asked quietly.

Jane nodded, breathed out and looked around the corridor, trying to avoid her eyes. 'Teresa, can we talk about this another time, this really isn't the place, is it?'

She nodded in return, glancing down, almost grateful that the conversation would have to wait as it was a subject she knew she would find almost as painful to talk about as Jane.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Sorry, another sad chapter, but wanted to address Jane's fear at this point. The next one is a whole lot lighter and all Jisbon so please keep reading.**

Chapter 13 – The Fight

They walked silently to the lecture room, each of them deep in their own thoughts. As they arrived, Lisbon straightened her shoulders and walked in. Jane smiled to himself, Agent Lisbon was back in charge now, not Teresa.

'Professor Vance?' she called to the man standing at the desk at the front of the room. 'Can we have a word?' she said, flashing her I.D.

The man looked up as they came closer. He was slim, in his early fifties, with lightly greying hair and wearing reading glasses that he took off to get a closer look at his visitors.

'Agent Lisbon, Mr Jane! I was hoping you would call on me' he said, surprising Lisbon.

He came towards them noting Lisbon's surprise. 'Sorry. But I've read and saw so much about you both online I feel that I know you already.

He looked at Jane. 'Although I seemed to have read that you were indicted recently for McAllister's murder, but yet here you are, still working for the FBI?'

He outstretched his hand to Jane as he came face to face with them, looking at Jane for a response. However, Jane remained silent and impassive, reading every part of the man's face and body language.

Noticing Jane's stare and realising no answer was forthcoming, Vance squirmed a little, dropped his hand and turned his attention to Lisbon. 'Although I have to say, Agent Lisbon, you're much prettier in person', trying his best to sound charming.

Jane stiffened a little as Lisbon ignored the remark and went straight to the point. 'Kerry Matthews was in your class, I take it you've heard about what happened to her.'

Vance nodded solemnly. 'Terrible business altogether.'

Lisbon asked 'What was she like as a student?'

Jane still stood silently beside her, his non motion starting to unnerve her now too. By now he normally would be wandering around the room with his nose in everything.

'Wonderful student, she had a deep fascination in your own...obsession, is that what it was?', finding the courage to look at Jane towards the end of the sentence.

Lisbon's eyes darted again to Jane who still remained silent.

'We're not here to talk about that!' Lisbon replied.

Jane spoke at last, looking directly at Vance. 'Well, why not, Lisbon? If by using a girl's murder helps him get a paper published then who are we to stop him?'

Vance's eyes widened. Mr Jane! How could you think such a thing? I just thought that while you were here investigating anyway-'

'You could pump me for a little information on the side, believe me I understand completely', Jane replied, smiling now, enjoying making this man struggle.

Lisbon interjected. 'We'll need a list of names from you for Kerry's class.'

'Of course Agent Lisbon, I'll get them for you now' Vance replied, relieved at the interruption and scurried back to his desk.

Jane and Lisbon remained where they were.

'So, what do you think?' Lisbon enquired.

Jane sighed. 'I don't think he did it, or at least not by himself anyway, much too nervous and he certainly wouldn't have put the paper in her mouth, it would only draw attention to him. He's not smart but he's not that stupid.'

'But he may have encouraged someone else to do it, is that what you think? Or is someone trying to frame him?'

Jane sighed heavily, the events of the day catching up with him. 'I'm not sure, I need to think about it some more.'

They left the college and went back towards their cars. When Lisbon arrived at the FBI office, Jane was already waiting for her in the parking garage.

'Hey, what's up?' she asked him.

'We need to talk before you speak to Abbott.'

'What about?'

Jane responded, animated again. 'Look, I've been thinking about this on my way back here. This murder was committed in Austin where we both now live. Obviously there is a big connection to both of us by choosing this particular victim and killing her this way. Whoever did this knew that by putting that note in her mouth it would get the FBI, and therefore us, to investigate. Without it the local police may have looked into it instead and we would never have even heard about it. Someone is trying to get our attention in a very loud way, Teresa, someone who knows a lot about us both.' His voice started to tremble slightly towards the end but then picked up again. 'For what reason, I don't know yet but it could well be a trap for us to fall into. I think we should ask Abbott for some protection.'

Lisbon stared at him in total surprise. This was not the Jane she knew with the devil may care attitude, the one who would ditch going by the book at the drop of a hat, preferring instead to set up ridiculous plans so he could have some fun whilst solving a case. She looked at him closer to try to understand and saw something else in his eyes, something akin to fear.

She replied evenly, stroking his arm, 'Jane, we have no evidence to back that up, there have been no direct threats against us and we're still not entirely sure that this whole thing still isn't just a massive coincidence'. She paused and then added softly trying to calm his fears, 'Besides, I'm a cop, I can protect us both.'

He looked at her silently then pulled his arm away, clearly annoyed now. 'Well, if you're not going to do anything about it, then I will' he said coldly, marching towards the elevator, leaving her standing there, stunned.

Jane strode to Abbott's office, telling him all his thoughts on the case and the need for protection. Apart from Lisbon, he had never shared so much information willingly about a case. Abbott looked at Jane, surprised himself that he hadn't had to drag the information from him as he normally did. Jane finally finished by saying, 'If you can't offer protection, then I swear I won't work on this case for another second.'

Jane exhaled and finally sat down, his leg shaking a little.

Abbott sat opposite him, eyeing him for a moment.

'Nice that you finished with a threat. I was beginning to wonder if it was really Patrick Jane standing in front of me as for once I think I got your entire thought process with no lies or pretence for a change.'

Jane smiled back thinly.

Just then Lisbon entered the office. Jane turned his head to see her before turning back to Abbott.

'I meant what I said' he said to Abbott stony faced.

'Agent Lisbon, please join us' Abbott said to Lisbon, motioning to the empty chair beside Jane.

She sat down, her eyes on Jane who was still staring at Abbott.

Abbott leaned back in his chair rocking it slightly looking at both of them in turn. He finally spoke to Lisbon. 'Do you agree with Jane that you both need some protection for this case?'

Jane leant forward in his chair, about to interrupt before Abbott held up a finger to stop him. 'Well, Agent Lisbon?' he asked again.

Lisbon shook her head. 'No sir I don't, there is no evidence at the moment that our lives are in danger.' Jane turned his face quickly towards her, giving her a chilly stare. Lisbon remained with her face towards Abbott.

'Well, then, it seems we are at an impasse' Abbott replied to them both. 'Jane here says he won't work on the case if I don't provide you with some.'

Lisbon turned towards Jane, furious with him now. 'You said that! Stop thinking about yourself for a damn minute and don't be so childish, remember a girl has been murdered!'

'For god's sake, Lisbon. I wasn't thinking about myself, I was thinking about you!' he yelled back.

Lisbon sat back in her chair, her blood still pumping, trying to process his words. Jane sighed heavily and put his head in his hands.

Abbott said quietly, 'I think I better give you both some time to talk about this' getting up to leave the room. 'Let me know what you decide.' Lisbon had forgotten he was there for a second and looked up, embarrassed at the display he had just witnessed. Jane remained where he was.

Lisbon looked at Jane, unsure of what to say at first before Jane spoke softly, his head still in his hands. 'I'm sorry, I didn't mean what I said to Abbott, it was just a bluff, you know I'll work on the case.'

Lisbon breathed deeply, placing a hand tentatively on his shoulder. Jane remained where he was and added softly, 'It's just that if anything were to happen to you and I could have prevented that somehow, especially now...'

Lisbon's heart broke and tears began to stream down her cheeks. She touched his cheek and pulled his face towards hers so she could look at him. Tears were also coming down his cheeks.

Jane wiped his tears as they sat smiling sadly at each other, Jane's thumbs moving across her cheeks to wipe her tears away too. Lisbon spoke quietly into his tear ridden eyes and said, 'Nothing is going to happen to me and even if it does it doesn't mean that it's your fault, you need to accept that.' He took her hands in his, looking down at them, a little calmer now.

She continued on. 'I've been a cop my whole adult life, Jane, you've known that since the day we met, it's my job to be in harm's way. If you have an issue with that, if it's too big for you to deal with that in order to be with me, then we really do have a serious problem.' He nodded, his eyes still transfixed on their hands.

'Okay, we'll do it your way' he replied softly. 'For now.'


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14 – The Pen

After they came out of Abbott's office, Lisbon went to speak to Abbott to update him and Jane immediately slumped on his couch and closed his eyes.

After cleaning herself up in the bathroom, Lisbon got a coffee and went to her desk, welcomed back happily by Wylie and Fischer on the way. It looked like the new case had made the rumour mill shut down on her private life at least, she thought. Despite how awful the day had turned out she was glad to be back. She opened her drawer to find a long cardboard box there with a ribbon tied round it. She looked over questioningly to Jane who by this time was fast asleep so turned back, removed the ribbon and opened the box. Inside the box was a beautiful silver pen, looking closer she saw it was engraved.

_To help you complete your idioitic paperwork while I dream of better things to do. _

She smiled widely. He knew her so well, she thought, not putting anything too gushy on it that would discomfort her if someone else borrowed it, just a little joke between them. She looked towards him, sound asleep behind her. She had a wicked urge to wake him but after the last hour knew he needed some rest.

She did too but her way of coping with the emotions she had just experienced was by throwing herself into her work so she worked silently for a couple more hours, tiredness then beginning to get to her too. Forensics had been a bust. Wylie was still working on the laptop but so far nothing of interest had been found. The ex-boyfriend still hadn't been found and Kerry's brothers were flying in to be questioned the next day. The idea that this girl could have been murdered because of her in some way weighed heavily on her.

But there was nothing more to be done for the day and she sighed heavily, rubbing her eyes and moving her neck from side to side to loosen her shoulders.

'Need a hand with that?' Jane asked behind her, rising from his couch.

'Jesus, Jane, I thought you were still asleep, you scared the hell out of me! How long have you been watching me?'

Jane smiled. He didn't think she would appreciate the lascivious thoughts he had been having watching her work whilst remembering her exertions that morning and he certainly didn't want to dampen her enthusiasm by making her feel self-conscious in the future. Then he had noticed a tinge of guilt come across her face, a feeling he was all too well accustomed to. He put his hands on her shoulders and began to massage them gently with his fingers. She tensed up immediately, looking around. 'Don't panic, woman, I've already checked, everyone's gone for the night' he whispered in her ear.

'None of this is your fault, you know that, right?' he said softly, his fingers still moving over her shoulders.

She nodded and began to relax a little. It was good to have the kind and light-hearted Jane back. She had been afraid that he would wake up and go back into himself again, shutting her off but instead seemed to need her closeness. He was really trying to make this work between them, to open up to her more. She closed her eyes as Jane moved the last strands of hair from her shoulders and began massaging them deeper.

'No other leads-'

'Shhh, tell me about it later, okay?'

She quietened as Jane's fingers pressed more firmly into her shoulders now, knots of stress being released with each touch. She couldn't help but sigh contentedly.

'Oh god, why have you never told me you could do this before?' she asked a few minutes later, almost purring now.

He chuckled behind her, enjoying the experience of giving her pleasure almost as much as her receiving it.

'Well, if I had I was afraid you would have tried to have your wicked way with me across this very desk and I'm not sure even I would have had enough self control to stop you', running his fingers down her arms and bending down to kiss her neck.

'So, why aren't you afraid of that happening now?'

'Well, it's different now. Now perhaps it's a fantasy, not a fear', he replied softly between kisses on her skin, his hands beginning to circle her waist.

She laughed and turned round to him, getting off the chair and putting her arms around his neck, her hands in his hair. He drew her in closer and pushed her against the desk, kissing her deeper and moving his hands under her blouse, needing to feel her bare skin. After a few minutes like this, she felt his desire for her as he pushed her further into the desk, their kissing become longer and more passionate, until she almost had her back on top of it but she then suddenly pushed him back, coming to her senses.

'Chicken' he said softly, smiling, backing away. 'I was afraid the Catholic schoolgirl in you would come to the surface just as it was getting interesting.'

She looked away from him and smiled again, blushing, and decided to change the subject. 'Thank you for the pen, it's absolutely beautiful, what was the occasion?'

He replied smoothly, 'Oh, you're welcome, just a little welcome back to work gift, would it be cheesy if I said it wasn't as beautiful as you?'

She rolled her eyes and nodded. 'Absolutely.'

She started to gather her belongings from her desk. 'Let's go home so I can thank you properly for it, maybe the Catholic schoolgirl in me will have a night off if you're lucky.'

'Home?'

She panicked at her choice of word and replied stumbling over the words, 'I mean my place... if you want to that is...or if you want to go to your place...be alone I mean... especially after today... that's totally fine of course, I understand.'

She was adorable when she was embarrassed so he stood for a moment letting her stew, a solemn look on his face before breaking into a wide smile, walking towards the elevator.

'Coming?' he called to her as she was still standing at her desk. 'But no takeout tonight, let's stop at the grocery store first so I can make you something a little better.'


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Just a little warning here, some sexual content towards the end. Next chapter will focus back on the case again.**

Chapter 15 – The Dinner

They arrived back at Lisbon's place laden down with bags. Lisbon had stayed in the car while Jane shopped and it looked like he had bought the store.

'I thought you were making me dinner, not a banquet' she teased, placing some bags on the counter.

'Well, you have practically nothing in your cupboards so I thought I'd fill them up for you whilst I was at it' he replied, taking groceries out of bags.

'So, what do you need me to do, I could be your sous chef if you want?'

He held her around her waist and saw the tiredness in her eyes. 'I'll take care of it, why don't you go run a bath for yourself, dinner will be ready in about an hour.'

Lisbon didn't need to be told twice. 'Well, alright then, if you're sure' she replied, kissing him on the lips gently and heading into the bathroom.

Jane got to work on dinner. He found the preparation a good distraction for him than dwelling on the case. He didn't know if Lisbon was right and he was over-reacting but he would make sure he would never be far from her side until this case was solved, no matter what she said.

He was beginning to cook some fish in a pan when Lisbon came back in, looking more refreshed and dressed in a football shirt and white shorts, her hair up in a ponytail and wearing no makeup. He looked around and inaudibly caught his breath, believing he had never seen her look so beautiful, before going back to his fish. She wondered if Patrick Jane was actually tongue tied for a second at the sight of her dressed like this, smiled at the prospect and came up behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist. He continued to move the fish with a knife in one hand whilst the other took one of her hands and brought it to his lips.

'Something smells good', she said cheerfully.

'I would say so' he replied, unable to resist her scent any longer. He quickly moved the fish off the heat and swung towards her, enveloping her in an embrace, kissing her passionately and breathing in the smell of eucalyptus and spearmint bubble bath.

She reciprocated, pulling him towards her, their tongues exploring, hungry for each other.

Jane pulled away finally, grinning at her. 'First we eat.'.

Lisbon shrugged and muttered 'Your loss' before sitting down at the table.

Jane dished up and they ate silently for a few moments before Lisbon spoke. 'So do you want to talk some more about the case or leave it until tomorrow?'

'Tomorrow, let's just have a nice night, okay?'

Lisbon nodded, more than satisfied with this after everything that had transpired earlier and continued eating.

'So, I thought you told me once that you would never try to seduce me over a meal?'

Impressed by her memory, Jane replied, 'Is that what I said? Well, who says I am?'

She raised her eyebrows. 'You're not? What a shame.'

'Well, I didn't say that you couldn't seduce me, of course.'

'Oh, I see. Well, I suppose I do have to thank you for that pen later', licking sauce from her lips. Jane grinned in response.

Between mouthfuls she asked, 'This is so good, how did you get to be such a great cook? I can't imagine the Carnie circuit having first class chefs to teach you!'

As he continued eating he replied, 'Glad you approve, you know how it is, you pick things up over time.'

'Not really', she laughed. 'I practically raised my brothers and I still burn toast sometimes.'

He nodded, continuing to eat.

'I'm serious Patrick, where did you learn? I'm curious.'

He looked up at the use of his first name. Second time in two days, she was making progress.

He thought for a second, then replied, 'Angela taught me', continuing to eat.

The mention of her name surprised Lisbon for a second. 'Oh, right. Well she did a fine job.' She put her head down and continued eating.

Jane raised his head and looked at her. 'Do you mind me mentioning her to you?'

Lisbon looked back at him. 'No, of course not, I was just taken aback for a second as you mention her so rarely.'

'Well I made a promise I was going to try to be truthful with you from now on so I'm trying to honour that. Plus, you asked me a direct question.'

She nodded. 'So, how did she learn, after all she was from the Carnie circuit too?'

Jane put down his knife and fork and looked at her. 'Are you sure you want to hear about this?'

Lisbon thought for a second then nodded. 'Yes, I do, if you want to tell me.'

Jane thought for a moment then began.

'Well, as you said she was in the Carnie circuit too so she didn't learn there. After we left and were doing pretty well financially she took some classes and enjoyed them so much she became pretty good.' Lisbon noticed Jane's eyes misting over slightly at the memory and wondered if this was the right conversation to draw him into after all.

He moved in his seat and continued, 'I was out conning some poor suckers a lot of the time back then so I suppose it gave her something to do when I was out of town or away for the evening, before Charlotte came along.' He paused again mentioning his daughter's name then picked himself up and said breezily, 'So that's it really, no big mystery. You know me, I have to know everything so once she perfected a recipe I made her show me how to do it too.'

Lisbon nodded, biting her lip. 'Thanks for telling me.'

Jane looked at her quizzically. 'What is it? Something else on your mind?'

She shook her head and began eating again.

'Teresa, you can ask me anything. If you want me to be honest with you then you at least owe me the same in return.'

She looked up at him. 'It doesn't matter, really, it's not important now anyway.'

He studied her face for what it could be before speaking again. 'You're wondering how I could have fallen in love with her and now fallen in love with you as the two of you seem so different, is that it?'

She nodded.

He smiled again. 'I guess I see why you would think that. One woman was a stay at home mom and the other is a kickass crimefighter.'

Lisbon smiled at his description of her.

He thought for a moment and then tried to explain. 'Teresa, when Angela and I met we were just kids, it was first love for both of us and I guess our shared desire to leave the Carnie life helped that flourish.' He pointed to Lisbon and then himself and added, 'Some would say our shared desire to catch Red John helped our relationship flourish too, just without the sex of course...unfortunately.'

After a moment he continued, 'Anyway, Angela had been the same as me, brought up to work and grift from a young age so when we finally escaped that life we both wanted as normal a one as we could imagine, one with kids and a big house like a lot of people do, I guess. We had travelled all other the country and all we wanted was somewhere we could stop and feel safe.' Jane's eyes grew darker as he spoke the last word and cleared a lump in his throat. He began again, 'You have to remember, Teresa, I was a different person back then, superficial in so many ways and an ego even bigger than the one I have now, if you can believe that.'

'That's hard to believe' she replied, eyebrows raised.

He continued on. 'When I met you I was different naturally, I wasn't attracted to materialistic trappings any longer and obviously I had a guilt and darkness inside of me that wasn't there when Angela was alive. I'm not saying she never saw a bad side to me, after all she knew what I did for a living, but she certainly never saw anything close to how destructive or hurtful I could be that you were witness to many times over the years we've known each other. In fact, even if I had a session with a client back then where I might have felt a twinge of guilt for ripping them off, I normally tried to cover it up in front of her. She saw through it some of the time, of course, and would call me out on it, but not always.'

Jane paused for a second noticing Lisbon's reaction. 'Why are you surprised at that?'

Lisbon replied, 'I don't know, Jane, I always thought that she knew you inside out, I guess, that you were as much an open book to her as I am to you.'

'Does it help knowing that I've always had trouble telling the truth to the people closest to me?'

Lisbon thought for a second then nodded. 'It does, actually.'

'Good. Anyway when I met you the first thing I noticed and liked about you was your compassion. It reminded me of Angela, she had the same trait. I don't know how many days I would come home to find some type of injured animal she had found to care for. But anyway, back to you, sure you tried to hide it behind a grumpy and bossy exterior but I knew it was there in you too, you never would have agreed to work with me in the first place otherwise.'

Lisbon interjected. 'That wasn't my decision, it was Minelli's.'

'You know very well that if you had objected strongly enough he would have backed down and retracted his job offer. I think you knew even then the trouble I would cause you but you still took me on.'

Lisbon thought for a moment, shrugged and nodded.

'As I got to know you better I realised, amongst other qualities, how strong you were, how passionate and how funny you were, especially when you were trying to tell me off. The best times I had at the CBI were the times you were trying to be angry with me' he chuckled.

'I'm glad I gave you so much amusement, you gave me an ulcer.'

Jane grinned and continued. 'Anyway I guess over time you made me want to be a better person, or at least some of the time I wanted to be better, to try and live up to some of your values. You made me re-evaluate some choices I had made, made me focus on cases to give me a purpose beyond the vengeance I needed, trusted my instincts even if you disagreed with them, fixed my mistakes and covered for me on numerous occasions. How could I not fall in love with you after all that?' He stopped and added, 'of course, you're also incredibly beautiful, which doesn't hurt either.'

Lisbon smiled widely now and got up from the table. She had never heard him speak so honestly and openly without some coaxing. She came towards him and took his hand. 'Think it's finally time to thank you for that gift now', pulling him towards the bedroom.

By the time they reached the door, Lisbon had removed Jane's shirt and he her top. They fell onto the bed, laughing as they knocked into the chest of drawers on their way.

'Ouch' groaned Jane.

'Your side again?' Lisbon grinned.

'No, my thigh this time' he moaned.

'Let me help with that' she said, pushing him flat on his back on the bed. She removed his trousers and boxers and began to rub his thigh, moving upwards until she heard him moan gently before her mouth took over, working quickly and proficiently as Jane dug his hands into the bed covers. He was breathing erratically now and reached for her to come up towards him but instead she pushed him back and continued.

'Teresa, please, I can't wait much longer' he pleaded after a short while and she finally stopped, discarding the remainder of her clothes. He pulled her onto him swiftly and flipped her over on the bed, his lips on hers, their tongues probing and before long he let out a satisfied groan. He lay there for a while, breathless, as she watched him, smiling contentedly. He finally spoke. 'If that's what happens when I buy you a pen, I'm glad I didn't buy you something more extravagant, you may have ended up killing me', he said, grinning.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16 – Laura

Lisbon awoke the next morning to soft kisses being placed on her neck and Jane's hand moving slowly from her hip to around her waist, his fingers dancing over her skin as they moved. With her eyes still closed, she smiled and revelled in his touch for a few moments before turning towards him opening her eyes.

'Morning' he said, planting a gentle minty kiss on her lips. She had noticed the night before he had placed a new toothbrush in the holder next to hers so must have wakened a little while earlier.

'Morning' she replied sleepily.

He went to bend down to kiss her again when she lightly pushed him back, moving forward so she could see the alarm clock sitting on the bedside table beside him. It read 5.45am. She thought for a second then rested her head back on the pillow and smiled up at him, giving him permission to continue silently. He smiled at her, doing the sums himself now.

'You know most men wouldn't be too happy that your first thought in the morning was to calculate the amount of sexual activity you had time to fit in so you wouldn't be late for work.'

'It's just this case, I just want it to be over' she replied, sighing. 'Besides, you're not exactly most men, are you?', putting her arms around his neck and pulling him towards her.

They made love and Lisbon rested her head on Jane's chest.

'So, who much cuddle time am I allowed then, Agent Lisbon?' he asked, putting his arms around her.

'About ten minutes.'

He smiled and kissed her forehead. After a moment he said softly, 'I had forgotten what this was like.'

'You mean sex in the morning, yeah, it's pretty great, huh?'

'No, that's not what I meant. Although I can't disagree, it certainly is with you.'

He paused for a moment then added, 'I meant this part, afterwards, the closeness of holding someone in your arms that you're in love with. I wish I hadn't been afraid for so long, that I dwelled on the bad things that might happen if I got close to you instead of thinking of the good things it might bring me.' He squeezed her tighter and kissed her forehead again.

She smiled and looked up at him, kissing him gently before putting her head back on his chest.

'I want to talk to those kids that found Kerry today' he said after a few moments, his arms still around her, sensing her thoughts had gone back to the case.

'You think they know something?'

'Maybe. That Michael character certainly sounds interesting at least and we don't have much else to go on. I want to see what they think of this professor too.'

'Okay, I need to stay at the office to talk to her brothers so I'll see if Cho or Fischer can go with you.'

'You don't trust me on my own?' he replied cheerfully, knowing she was making sure he was protected, despite her protests yesterday.

'Never', she replied cheerfully in return.

* * *

Lisbon and Fischer sat across from Kerry's brothers, obviously still in shock at her murder. They learned that Kerry's mother died of cancer when she was fourteen, making her father spiral into a world of depression so much so that he left them all a year later, unable to cope with the loss of his wife. He had died at a halfway house a couple of years ago after living on the streets in the intervening years. When her father left, Kerry fought for and was eventually granted emancipation, refusing to let her brothers go into care. She worked two jobs before and after school to support them financially and still worked in the coffee shop at the college to send money home. Lisbon sighed heavily, a headache beginning to form. She thanked them for their help and promised that she would find the person responsible before leaving the room.

She stood outside for a moment, rubbing the temples of her forehead before Fischer came out. Kerry's life hadn't been a carbon copy of hers but there were certainly enough similarities for her to be concerned.

'Let's get some coffee' Fischer said, walking towards the break area.

Lisbon followed her there and stood with her back to the counter. Fischer gave her a cup and looked at her.

'If this is too much for you-'

Lisbon immediately looked up from her coffee and snapped, 'It's not, I just need a minute.'

Fischer nodded. 'Okay.' She then added in a softer tone, 'Look I know we don't know each other that well but obviously I've read your background and Abbott's told me about Jane's theory on this case. After talking to her brothers it's bound to get to you a little. I know it would if it were me. All I'm saying is that if you need to speak to someone impartial about this, or anything else, then I'm here.'

Lisbon nodded, sipping her coffee. 'Thanks Kim, I appreciate the offer, really, but I'd rather just focus on the work for now. I'm sorry I barked at you.'

Fischer nodded, taking a sip herself. 'It's good to have you back by the way' she said brightly. 'Jane was a real pain in the ass when you were in D.C. I don't know how you've put up with him for so long without killing him.'

Lisbon smiled as Wylie walked in and addressed them both. 'Jake Henderson's been found. He was in a bar on the outskirts of town, looked like he'd been there for most of the day. He's been sleeping it off and local police are bringing him here now.'

Lisbon perked up and said, 'Okay, let's go see what he's got to say for himself.'

* * *

Jane and Cho were driving to the campus when Lisbon rang to update them. After Cho had heard the information Jane put the speaker off on his phone and turned around in his seat so he could talk to her more privately. 'You okay?'

'Yes, of course, I'm fine.'

'Teresa' he said softly.

'Just let it go Jane, please, I have to be okay so I can do the job' she replied, hanging up the phone.

He sighed, putting the phone away.

Cho kept his eyes ahead and said, 'She'll be fine. She's the toughest person I know.'

Jane nodded his head in agreement.

* * *

They arrived at the campus a little later, Cho went to get the room numbers from the office for Michael and Julia as Jane went to see Laura first.

The door was ajar as he knocked.

'Come in' called a female voice. Jane entered to see two girls sitting on the bed, a blonde one with her arm around a brunette.

'Laura?' he said to the brunette.

'Yes' she replied as she looked up, tears coming down her face.

'Can I talk to you? I'm Patrick Jane. I'm with the FBI.'

'I already spoke to some people yesterday.'

'I know, but it won't take long I promise.' He glanced around her room before looking at her again. 'You don't mind leaving us to it do you?' he said to the blonde friend who looked back at Laura for affirmation.

Jane found a kettle and switched it on, the two girls eyeing him suspiciously.

'You got any tea?'

Laura replied, 'Y...Yes, just over there' waving to a small box on her desk, still confused at this strange man coming into her room making himself at home.

'It's okay' she said to her friend 'I'll be all right, I'll call if I need you.'

'Are you sure?' her friend asked.

'You can leave the door open, if you like' Jane said, putting the teabags into two mugs he found, his back still to the girls.

The friend left as Jane gave a mug to Julia as he sat on her desk chair.

He allowed her to take a few sips then started talking as her hands began to shake a little less.

'From what I hear she was a good person' he said, sipping his own tea now. 'Help us find out who did this to her.'

Laura looked up. 'Me? Of course I would if I knew anything but I don't. I didn't see or hear anything yesterday.'

He studied her face intensely. 'Who do you think would do this to her?'

She looked at him astonished and stuttered, 'How would I know?'

Jane leant back in the chair. 'Well, someone just came to your mind, who?', his voice a little louder.

She looked away from him and down to her tea.

'You won't find the answer there, who?' he asked loudly.

She shook her head and began to cry a little but he wouldn't let up, leaning forward in the chair and speaking quietly again 'Who, Laura?'

She looked up at him, tears running down her cheeks and whispered 'Professor Vance.'

Jane leant back in his chair, thinking.

'Why him?' he asked her after giving her a tissue to blow her nose and she composed herself a little.

She exhaled. 'Because he's a creep, you know, sleazy, he had a thing for Kerry lately.'

'What type of thing?'

'You know, putting his hand on her back in class, ogling her, making comments to make her feel uncomfortable.'

Jane thought for a second then said to her, 'He wasn't just like this with Kerry, was he? He was like this with you too, or at least had been in the past.'

She looked up at him, unsure of what to say in response.

'No point lying to me now, Laura, it's all over your face. That's why your friend was here and didn't want to leave you alone. You told her that you're afraid if he did do it then he might do the same to you, is that it?'

Laura nodded. 'Something like that, yes.'


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Thanks again for everyone enjoying this, your comments mean the world to me. This one is mostly case centred but some more cute Jisbon next chapter. Also, Jane's thoughts on who the killer is too so please keep reading.**

Chapter 17- Jake & Michael

Jake Henderson sat in the interview room, looking agitated and hung over. He had longish brown wavy hair, brown eyes, chiselled features and wore a skinny black t-shirt, motorcycle jacket and blue jeans. As Lisbon saw him through the glass she imagined Jane would call him your typical bad boy.

When Lisbon and Fischer walked in he stood up and shouted, 'I didn't do this, I would never have harmed Kerry!'

Fischer told him to sit back down as they took their seats.

'So, you're a hard man to find.'

'Didn't know it was a crime now to go out and get wasted when you've just heard your ex has been murdered.'

'When was the last time you saw Kerry?' Lisbon asked.

He calmed a little and moved back in his chair. 'Last week, I went to see her to see if she'd reconsider breaking up with me, told her I'd change for her, that I'd do anything for her', looking down at his lap.

'And she wouldn't', Lisbon replied. 'Why did she break up with you anyway?'

He sighed heavily. 'She said she wanted to focus on college, didn't want to get into anything too serious.'

'Did you believe her?' Fischer asked.

Jake shrugged. 'Dunno, I guess so but maybe she was trying to let me down easy. I was really into her and maybe it scared her off. I'm a mechanic, I was lucky she even went out with me in the first place, I was never going to be good enough for her anyway, I was surprised she didn't dump me sooner' he replied, crestfallen.

'That must have made you angry' Fisher said.

He looked up, cross again at the implication. 'No, it didn't.' He looked back down again and said quietly, 'It just made me sad.'

After they left the room Lisbon said, 'I don't think he did it.'

Fischer nodded. 'Me neither.'

Fischer went back to her desk to look at the statements gathered from other classmates to see if she could find any other leads.

Lisbon called Jane. 'Hey' she said as cheerfully as she could muster, rubbing her temples again.

'Hey. I take it from your tone the ex-boyfriend is a bust.'

'Yeah, he's much too heartbroken for him to have done this. I thought he was a good lead, you know, especially the way she was killed, strangulation is normally a crime of passion.'

'Yes, normally, but not always.' He paused for a second and added, 'Well he could be heartbroken because he did it, if course.'

'Yeah, maybe, but I don't think so in this case.'

'Okay, I trust your instincts.'

'You sound tired' he said quietly.

'I'm okay, sorry about cutting you off before.'

'Well, it's hardly the first time and I'm sure it won't be the last that you hang up on me.' He smiled when he heard a small laugh on the other end.

'So, how are things at your end, any joy?', back in agent mode again.

He conveyed the conversation he had with Laura to her. Lisbon wanted to go back to interview the professor immediately but Jane told her that he wanted to talk to Michael and Julia first and would call her after he'd done that.

'Do you want me to come up there to question them with you?'

'No, there's no need, Cho's here if I get myself into any trouble.'

'Okay, I'll help Fischer with the statements from the other classmates then until you get back, hopefully we'll have the autopsy results by then too, see you then.'

'Okay, I love you' he whispered.

Lisbon blushed and answered, 'I know, me too' then added, 'Now get back to work.'

Jane hung up the phone, happy that she sounded less stressed by the end of the call. He would have liked her to come to the college but knew she was much safer at the office.

He turned round to Cho who was looking at him with raised eyebrows and a deadpan expression, obvious that he had heard the last few words.

'What?' Jane asked him.

'You're looking more like Rigsby every day. Same puppy dog expression.' Shaking his head, he walked off. 'Come on, Michael's room is this way.'

Jane smiled to himself and shrugged, he could hardly argue with the man.

When they reached the room, Cho knocked loudly. 'FBI.'

An athletic young man with black hair at least six foot tall answered the door, looking at Cho first who was showing his badge then noticing Jane behind him.

'Mr Jane' he said nervously.

Jane smiled. 'Hey Michael, mind if we come in?' entering the room without waiting for a response.

Michael nodded and sat back down on the bed.

Jane smiled as he roamed around the room. Lisbon hadn't mentioned Michael's build or exactly what she said to him but she must have given him one hell of a death stare and a blatant threat for this athlete to become tongue tied in his presence. He would have loved to have witnessed it, he was normally the one on the end of one of her stares.

Cho asked him more questions about Kerry and what he thought of the professor. He said that he had noticed the professor taking more of an interest in her but just thought that it was because she was in the middle of her thesis and may have needed some help.

Jane eventually turned round to look at him squarely in the eyes. 'So, Michael, I believe you have some questions for me.'

Michael looked at Cho and then at Jane, a slight panic coming over him before he answered. 'Well, no, I mean, I thought I wasn't allowed to talk to you about any of that.'

'Oh, don't worry about that, Michael, Agent Lisbon was just in a bad mood, she hadn't slept much the night before, always makes her grumpy' he said cheerfully, looking at Cho at the end of the sentence. He faced Michael again and said, 'What do you want to know?'

Cho looked away and shifted uncomfortably. The last thing he wanted to hear about was Jane and Lisbon's sex life and supposed that was Jane's way of getting him back for his puppy dog comment earlier.

Michael shifted again before answering softly, 'Well I guess I wanted to know how you felt about him now that he's dead?'

Jane looked up to the ceiling and sighed. 'Why is that important to you, Michael? Is there someone you would like to see dead, someone who took someone important from you?'

Michael looked at him, shocked and said, 'You've studied my background, know what happened to my sister?'

Jane smiled again and looked at Cho. 'Nah, I don't normally read all that boring stuff, I leave that to the FBI agents to muddle their way through.'

'So, how did you know? I thought you weren't a real psychic.'

Jane leaned back and waved his hand across the room before speaking. 'It's pretty obvious you've lost a sister, a younger one. You have two photos here, one with you and your parents taken at your high school graduation. It's supposed to be a happy occasion, right? But there are sad tears in your mother's eyes and your father's arm is round her shoulder protectively, a tissue just peaking out of his hand. You're smiling but there's no happiness there, just a vacant expression. The other photo is a happy girl about sixteen years old. Now, if there was some nefarious reason you had a photo like that you certainly wouldn't have it on display so I'm assuming it's your sister, she probably died a short time before your graduation. She doesn't look ill so she was taken from you all suddenly. Also, people who want to pursue a career in law enforcement sometimes do so because of a traumatic event that happened to them in their own life, perhaps hoping they can prevent others from feeling the same as they do. The fact you are interested in my feelings for the man who killed people I loved and who is now dead too makes it obvious that she was murdered and the perpetrator was never brought to justice.'

Michael sat back, fascinated and nodded. 'She got hooked on drugs when she was sixteen, just after that photo was taken, overdosed at seventeen.' He breathed heavily, 'I didn't even realise at the time, I was too busy running around with my own friends, I should have taken care of her.'

Jane nodded and said softly, staring in his eyes, 'You think by killing those responsible for getting her hooked is going to help? Believe me, it's not, it's just going to break your parents hearts all over again. Take it from me, Michael, it's not worth it. The best way to cherish her memory is to move on with your life and make it mean something.'

Michael held his head in his hands and nodded.

As they went outside Cho looked sideways at Jane. 'What you said in there, it was all bull, wasn't it? That's not what you believe, you just said it to stop him wrecking his life.'

Jane nodded. 'Of course.'

They went to Julia's room next but couldn't find her there. Jane went to pick the lock when Cho said, 'You can't do that, we'll have to come back to question her anyway, what's the point?'

'I just want to get a little look first.' Cho nodded. 'Okay, but be quick about it and don't touch anything, I'll wait here.'

Jane entered and glanced round the room for a few minutes before coming back out.

'So?' Cho asked.

Jane shrugged. 'I'm getting tired, need a nap, let's go back to the office, we'll talk to her another time.'

'Don't you want to talk to the professor again today?'

'No, let's get him to the office tomorrow, shall we? Might shake the professor up a bit being questioned in a big scary FBI building' he yawned.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18 – The Suspect

Jane called Lisbon on their way back to tell her that he was sure Michael wasn't the killer and filled her in on his plan to unnerve the professor tomorrow.

When he got back he found Lisbon in the break area, getting herself a coffee.

'Hey there' he said, peeking his head around the door.

'Hey yourself' she replied, smiling.

He looked around to see if anyone else was there and strolled towards her, pulling her to the back of the room so they were obscured from the door. He took her coffee from her, placed it on the counter behind her and held her around her waist, kissing her lips gently, tasting coffee. He had never cared for it but was beginning to appreciate its taste on Lisbon's lips. 'Missed you' he said softly, giving her a more lingering kiss.

She smiled up at him, putting her arms around him, and returned his kiss. 'Me too.'

He went in to kiss her again but she pushed him back lightly. 'Now we can't get carried away like last night, Abbott could walk in here any moment this time' she chastised him lightly.

Jane shrugged, his arms still round her waist. 'Well, he could have done that last night too.'

Lisbon looked at him, momentarily surprised and exclaimed, 'What do you mean? You told me everyone had gone home!'

Jane grinned wickedly in return.

Lisbon pulled away from him, her mouth open. 'Jane! What were you thinking? What if he had walked in? What if I hadn't stopped it going any further?'

Jane chuckled. 'I knew you would stop it, although for a moment there I began to have my doubts.'

Lisbon blushed and shook her head, her expression forming a pout. 'You know you could have gotten me fired and put yourself in prison, you realise that?'

Her pout only made him want to have her right here in the break room even more.

'Don't be ridiculous. Dennis would never let me go and he knows I won't work without you so you're safe too.'

'I think he may have drawn the line if he had found us having sex on my desk!' she replied loudly just as Wylie entered the room.

He looked at them both, speechless for a second. Lisbon turned scarlet and looked towards the ground, mortified. Jane smiled widely at her embarrassment and looked at Wylie, asking him brightly, 'Hey Wylie, you got something new on the case?'

Wylie looked at them both again and stuttered, 'Umm...yeah...autopsy results are in. I've...ah...left them on your desk, Agent Lisbon' he said to her, her head still bowed.

He left the room quickly before Lisbon lifted her head. Jane still stood smirking.

'Oh my god' she said, her eyes closing.

* * *

They went back to her desk. Lisbon glanced over at Wylie who was busying himself with something on his computer, his eyes fixated on the screen.

Jane whispered, 'Back at the scene of the crime, eh?'

Lisbon kicked him in the shin as she picked up the autopsy report.

Jane lifted a different file from her desk and retired to his couch, rubbing his ankle.

After reading for a few minutes, Fischer came over to Lisbon's desk. 'Have you read the autopsy report?'

'Just in the middle of it now, you want to summarise it for me?'

'Basically she was injected with a paralytic drug before strangulation. She wouldn't have been able to move a muscle before she was killed.'

'Dear god, well that clears up how there was no trace of anyone else's DNA under her fingernails, she was unable to fight them off.'

'It also makes this premeditation, effectively ruling out the ex-boyfriend I would say, can't see him killing her this way.'

Lisbon nodded. 'Definitely.'

'I'm having Wylie check if the drug in question has been bought recently by anyone at the college, it's available online would you believe. They most likely used a stolen credit card to purchase it but it's worth a shot.'

Fischer looked at Jane who had been listening to the conversation. 'What do you think?'

He replied, putting the file he had been reading down, 'I agree, it's not the ex-boyfriend.'

Fischer glanced at Lisbon then back at Jane. 'I know, we just said that, want to give us an insight into who you think it was then?'

Jane was staring into space, his mind in action before he replied, 'Not sure, I should have an answer for you tomorrow', before closing his eyes, finishing the conversation.

Lisbon shrugged to Fischer who shook her head and got back to work.

A few hours later Lisbon roused Jane from his sleep. 'Hey, wake up' she said as he blinked his eyes to focus on her. He automatically reached up and pulled her towards him, kissing her softly.

She stood up and said sternly 'You can cut that out, there'll be no more of that in the office.'

He grinned back at her, thinking he would see about that. 'What time is it?'

'Just gone seven, I'm exhausted so I'm heading home' she said, lifting her bags from the desk.

Jane sat up, confused for a second. He had assumed they would be leaving together and began to feel a sense of panic at the thought of her going home alone as she walked towards the elevator. He was about to come up with some excuse why he had to come with her when she stopped and turned around to him.

She smiled and said to him, 'Coming?' as he had done to her the previous night.

He jumped off the couch and joined her.

They stopped off at the airstream first for Jane to pick up a few more things, first among them a cup and saucer, along with some toiletries and a change of clothes for the morning. Lisbon wondered if he was moving in gradually without even telling her. She thought it would be just like him, to assume he could without asking or discussing it with her and, to her surprise, she liked the idea if that was the case. She had spent most nights with Marcus, enjoying his company but was glad when she went to work or just to have a night alone if they saw each other too much, still needing her independence from him. She smiled as she thought that perhaps Jane was right when he told her jokingly that once she had him there she would never want him to leave. At this moment she couldn't imagine ever waking up without him.

He had brought a few more things than he needed for an overnight stay to see how she reacted. Jane glanced over to her as she drove, a smile on her face, making him smile in return.

When they got to Lisbon's place, Jane noticed a FBI vehicle at the end of her street. She had obviously relented and asked Abbott to have someone watch over the house but hadn't mentioned it to him. He was relieved and decided not to bring it up for fear she would change her mind.

They had picked up some Thai food from her favourite place on the way home and lay on the couch together companionably eating it from the containers and watching TV. It reminded Jane of late nights at CBI, just the two of them left in the office alone, her at her desk and he lying on the couch he bought her, eating takeout. He had wondered fleetingly sometimes even then what kissing her or making love with her would be like, only to push such thoughts to the back of his mind, stupidly blaming his loneliness for thinking of her like that. He really had been an idiot, he told himself.

Lisbon finished eating and turned to Jane, jolting him out of his thoughts. 'So you want to fill me in on your plan tomorrow to unmask the killer?'

Jane reached for the container Lisbon had just put down. 'Wouldn't you prefer it to be a surprise?'

She retrieved the remote control and turned the TV off, glaring at him.

'Hey, I was watching that!' he replied as he reached for the remote control just as she grabbed it first.

'Jane, I'm serious, don't play games with me, not on this case.'

He nodded in agreement putting his arm around her and kissing her forehead. 'Okay, I know. But to be honest I'm not 100 percent sure yet who it is. At the moment it's just a hunch but I'm pretty confident that I will know tomorrow either way.'

'So who is your best guess?'

'Julia Myles.'


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19 – Recriminations

'Julia Myles?' Lisbon replied, moving herself to a sitting position. 'But you haven't even met her yet, you said she wasn't in her room?'

'I know, but I still had a little nosey around in there. There were no personal effects anywhere, just a room full of textbooks and a very neatly made up bed' Jane said, sitting up too.

Lisbon eyed him quizzically. 'Just because she has a neat bed and no knick knacks you think she's a killer? What else?'

'That's why I read the background check done on her earlier. She came here about a year ago from thousands of miles away. What type of person does that without bringing a memento or two with her, a photo to put on her nightstand or desk at the least? Also, she's originally from Fairfield, California, it's pretty close to Napa.'

'You think she knew McAllister? That she was some sort of disciple of his? Jane, I know to trust your hunches by now but this is thin to say the least. That would make her about sixteen when he died, surely he wouldn't have been recruiting her at that age? And you said you only had a quick look around, she could have a box full of personal stuff for all you know hidden away somewhere in her room, she just might not be the type to put them on show. Besides, I looked at her file too, she's from a good family, she's never even had a speeding ticket.'

Jane nodded, listening intently. 'McAllister was a sheriff, that fact that she's never been in trouble doesn't mean a thing. And to be honest, the fact that she's never even had a speeding ticket proves my point even more, she's been taught to be careful, fastidious.'

Jane thought for a second and added softly, 'And age didn't mean a damn thing to him', looking drawn. Lisbon touched his hand and he took hers, as he began to speak again. 'If he saw something in her, something he could manipulate for his own means, then of course he would have recruited her.'

'Or she could have been taught to be a neat freak and a good driver by her parents. And what is her motive for killing Kerry? And why like that?'

Jane nodded, acknowledging they were all good questions he didn't have an answer for yet and that she could be right, she could just be a neat freak after all. 'That's why I need to talk to her tomorrow, I'll know then. Instead of going to the college, let's get her to the office instead, I want to see how she stands up to being placed in an interrogation room.'

Okay. I'll get it organised in the morning.'

* * *

They lay back on the couch again and tried to relax. There was nothing to do until morning and Lisbon's impatience was making her leg twitch.

Jane put his arms around her and began to stroke her hair, trying to calm her down.

'You want to watch some people shoot each other or relieve the tension another way?' he asked, beginning to kiss her ear.

She smiled back at him, her leg relaxing but Jane stopped kissing her, apparent to him her mind was not on carnal activity at the moment.

'What is it? You have a question for me obviously.'

Lisbon breathed deeply and sat beside him. Jane looked at her, trying to read what the question might be before she uttered it.

'How did you feel, after you killed him?' Lisbon asked tentatively.

Jane understood and nodded. 'Are you sure you want to know?'

'Yes.'

He had thought that he had effectively sidelined this question from her but it had obviously still been playing in her mind.

He thought for a moment before replying. 'I felt glad that I had finally accomplished what I had set out to do, that I had avenged my wife and daughter's killer and, perhaps more than that, that his years of playing games with me were finally over at last and I could finally breathe. I knew he would never harm anyone I cared about ever again and I felt an overwhelming sense of relief and joy because of that.'

'You did the right thing, it's taken me a long time to come to that conclusion and I still wish it hadn't been you to do it but if he had been captured I know he would have found some way to keep on torturing you, even from a prison cell.'

'Why did you help me that day? If it hadn't been for you persuading Abbott to let me go I may never have got him.'

Lisbon sat with her head down and spoke. 'I honestly don't know. I had watched you struggle for so many years and looking into your eyes that day and seeing your desperation I just had to do everything in my power to help. As soon as you drove off I could hardly breathe for a while, I was so worried about you. If anything had happened to you, I would never have forgiven myself.'

'That's why I called you, just to let you know I was okay so you wouldn't worry as much.'

Lisbon looked up at him again. 'Was that always going to be your plan, to run away when it was all over?'

He shrugged at the uncomfortable question. 'To be honest I never thought I'd survive it. I thought if I actually did manage to kill him then I would either be dead too or be arrested immediately. When I did it and noticed no one was around me pointing guns I just began running as fast as I could.'

She said quietly, 'I was surprised you strangled him, I can understand shooting him but strangulation, it's so...'

'Personal?'

Lisbon shrugged. 'I dunno, I just can't imagine you being so violent, it troubled me that you were, even to him.'

Jane smiled faintly. 'Are you worried about my immortal soul, is that it?'

Lisbon looked at him and made the smile fall from his face. 'I know you think my faith is a joke but I pray for you every day, you know.'

Jane nodded and, trying to respect her beliefs for once, said nothing.

He then said, 'I always told you I would kill him with my own hands, Lisbon. I never lied to you about that. I would have gutted him if I had a knife on me at the time.'

She grimaced and nodded morosely. 'I know you did. I just hoped when you came to it you wouldn't have been able to do it.'

'Knowing what I did, did it change your opinion of me?'

Lisbon thought for a second and replied, 'Maybe it should do, but no, not fundamentally.'

'That's good to hear' he replied, relieved.

'I presume you had a fake identity already in place to get you over the border?'

Jane nodded. 'Yes, I'd had it for years on the off chance I might need it someday along with some cash. I had a safety deposit box so went straight there and picked up what I needed the same day.'

'I know. Abbott showed me the security footage of you going into the bank that turned up a few days after you left. He wanted to see if I knew about it in advance.' She sighed heavily. 'He knew when he saw my reaction I didn't have a clue.'

Jane nodded, taking her hand, 'It had to be that way Teresa, I knew he would pump you for information and I didn't want the focus to be on you, he had to know I acted alone, I couldn't risk you being implicated.'

Lisbon removed her hand from his and sniffed. She looked up at him. 'Do you have any regrets at all?'

Jane noticed a change in her disposition as she withdrew her hand. 'If you're asking me if I would do anything differently that day, the answer is no, frankly I wouldn't. I'm still happy the man is dead and that I did it. But it didn't bring my family back to me, didn't make their loss less painful. And because of what I did that day I stayed away from you for two years, I have plenty of regrets about that decision.'

'You thought by leaving you could protect us from taking the fall with you, that the FBI would turn their spotlight to you and leave us be' Lisbon said, pain in her voice.

'It worked, didn't it?'

'I despised you for doing that to us, doing that to me without so much as a discussion, after all we went through for you over the years', unable to control the anger in her voice that had built up inside her for two years.

'I thought I was doing the best thing I could for you, give you a chance at a normal life, stop you wasting any more of it on me-'

'That wasn't your decision to make for me. You know, even after seeing that security footage I was still in denial for a while. I kept imagining you showing up at my door or contacting me somehow but you never did, not for a long time. I even wanted the FBI to catch you so I could at least see you and shout at you. Then I realised one day you were probably gone for good and I had to accept that and try to move on.'

Her voice cracked a little but she continued, 'You broke my heart, Jane. I know we weren't a couple so I had no right to feel that way but I did nonetheless. Your leaving like that, especially at a time when I thought my career was over too, was like losing a part of myself.' The words came out tumbling, she had never meant to bring this up to him but her pent up fury suddenly had to be released. S

he breathed a little, trying to calm herself before looking up at him and added softly 'You say I had wasted my life on you, I never _ever_ saw it that way.'

He looked into her green eyes, as she tried to keep her tears at bay. 'I thought it was the best way to protect you, Teresa, honestly, it was only when I was on the island for a while I realised how my leaving must have affected you as I was feeling the same way too. I was lost without you too.'

They held each other for a long while before Lisbon spoke again. 'I'm sorry. I shouldn't have lost my temper with you, it's all in the past and we should be concentrating on our future.'

He kissed her tenderly. 'I realise now why you were so distant from me when I got back, you still resented me for leaving.'

'Was I?'

'Yes, in the beginning you hardly ever wanted to go on cases with me, kept on pushing Fischer on to me instead.'

Lisbon replied, a smile beginning to form again, 'Well I didn't think you'd mind with your history together on the island, as she was the one who enticed you back to the U.S. I thought you might enjoy her company again.'

Jane chuckled and replied, 'A little jealous, eh?' Then he added, 'Is that really what you thought at the time? That I came back because of her?'

Lisbon shrugged.

He laughed again. 'You really are clueless sometimes, you know that?'

The remark made her turn her head to him. 'So tell me the truth then, why'd you come back?'

He began to explain. 'Well, as I said I felt lost and alone, especially after two years. My one highlight of the day was writing my letter to you. I used to post it and then take a walk on the beach. I recited the words to myself and imagined you standing there beside me, rolling your eyes or laughing.'

Lisbon turned her head again. 'Really?'

Jane nodded, shrugged and continued. 'Anyway, when I first met Kim on the island she was nice and I guess I was attracted to her a little. I was lonely, thought it might turn into a little holiday romance, a way of getting back into the dating scene I suppose. Being with her and talking to her made me not dwell on missing you quite so much.'

Lisbon shuffled a little, a pang of jealousy hitting her.

Jane, reading her body language, said 'Let me finish, I think you'll like how this story ends'.

He continued, 'After I heard that Abbott was on the island, I went to see him and he offered me his deal. I told him I was done with that life and that I wasn't interested. At the time I thought I meant it. Then he mentioned he found me through my letters to you. Looking back, I think he saw the truth of how I felt then, why was I continuing to include you in my life if I had supposedly moved on? It's obvious to me now that I never had.' He brushed a hair from her forehead and kissed it softly. Lisbon moved closer, placing her hand in his.

'Anyway. I went to dinner with Kim that night and we talked about the decision I had to make, no specifics of course, just that I had been offered a job that meant I could go home. It was nice having the company and she made some good points as to why I should take the offer. In hindsight I realise she was making those points for her own purpose but they made sense, nonetheless. So, on our way home from dinner that night I got beat up a little-'

'What?' Lisbon asked, turning around.

Jane smiled. 'Oh, it was nothing much, I just annoyed a drug dealer a little earlier in the day.'

'Oh, was that all?'

'Anyway, I was pretty drunk by that stage too so she helped me into my place-'

'Are you sure I'm going to like where this is going?'

Jane chuckled. 'Yes! Now let me finish, woman. She put me to bed I guess, I hardly remember it to be honest, I was so out of it. Anyway, the next morning she was standing with her back to me, making me a cup of tea. She must have stayed to keep an eye on me for Abbott. I woke up at the sound of the kettle and in my hung over state took a second to realise who she was.'

He pulled Lisbon's face up to him and said softly, 'In that second before I came to my senses I thought it was you standing there somehow and my heart raced with excitement at the thought.'

He continued, 'I went to the bar I hung out at for breakfast to think things over and Kim came to see me and told me that going back didn't mean going backwards, it could mean moving on and that's what finally made up my mind for me. By that stage, I couldn't get the thought of seeing you in person out of my mind anway so I would have more than likely taken Abbott up on his deal, even without her coaxing. So, in a way you were right, she did entice me back but only because she reminded me of you that morning.'

He caressed her cheek as her tears began to fall at his words before going on. 'So that's why I came home. For you, Teresa Lisbon. I had a feeling Abbott might back out of his deal but I made him promise you would be there when I got back, I knew he would give me that at least.'

'Why the hell didn't you tell me all that when you came back?'

He shrugged. 'Haven't you worked it out yet? I'm an idiot.'

He held her again ans smiled. 'So, if I forgive you for losing your temper with me earlier will you forgive me for being an idiot and leaving you for two years?'

She punched him in the arm but couldn't help but laugh.

'You know I kept all your letters' she said softly.

'I thought you might' he replied.

**A/N: I have taken a little artistic license as to why Jane left the island as this is the angle I would have liked to have seen. Hope you enjoy.  
**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Warning, some sexy scenes ahead. A little more light-hearted Jisbon before I get back to the case next chapter.**

Chapter 20 - Love

'Where are they?' Jane called to Lisbon as she was brushing her teeth in the bathroom. He was already undressed to his boxers in the adjoining bedroom.

She smiled as she finished off. 'Chest of drawers, third one down at the back', she replied, coming back into the room.

She got into bed noticing three novels stacked neatly at what was now presumably Jane's side of the bed. He really was making himself at home.

Jane rummaged in the drawers until he found the box full of the letters he had sent her. He jumped back into bed excitedly, opening the box like a child opens a Christmas present. Lisbon watched him curiously.

'Why were you hiding them, afraid I might see them and be overcome with your lust for me?' he asked, delving through them.

She laughed softly. 'Nothing like that, no.'

He turned his head towards her. 'Oh, I see, you didn't want Marcus to come across them?'

She blushed a little. 'Okay, yes, I didn't want to explain them to him, he would have thought it weird and I didn't want him to get the wrong idea.'

Jane raised his eyebrows. 'You mean you didn't want him to get the right idea.'

'That's not the only reason I didn't tell him.'

Jane answered before she had time to explain. 'You wanted these to be something between the two of us only.'

She smiled, nodding. He put the letters on the bedside table beside him and lay down beside her, looking into her eyes. 'Good' he said softly, planting a gentle kiss on her lips.

'You know the first time Pete showed up with one of those I thought you had come back. I got back from work and he was waiting for me.'.

'Sorry.'

'You know I almost took a plane to see you a few times.'

'You did? What stopped you?'

'Well, I had a job and Abbott was still watching me. Plus I knew it had to be your decision to come back. And I thought if I did go and see you I was afraid I would never have been able to leave you.'

Jane smiled back. 'That would have been okay with me. We could have frolicked naked in the sand.'

'Yeah, dead romantic, have you ever had sex on a beach? The sand goes everywhere.'

Jane's eyes glistened. 'Tell me more, Lisbon.'

She laughed again and caressed his cheek. 'I never thought we would get here so quickly. I mean, a month ago I never imagined you lying here in my bed.'

'I would hope not, it would have been a little crowded with Pike here too.'

Lisbon noted a small tinge of insecurity behind the joke.

She looked at him seriously. 'You know it's different with you, don't you?'

He nodded and kissed her again.

'I thought you would be more nervous, you know, the first time. You surprised me that you weren't.'

'You thought I wasn't nervous? I thought my heart was about to explode from my chest!'

Lisbon laughed. 'Really? You didn't act like it, that's for sure.'

Jane smiled at the memory. 'Well there came a point where my libido took over from my nervousness.' He grinned and added, 'Speaking of which...'

He suddenly sat astride her, pinning her hands to the pillow, peppering kisses over her neck.

She giggled and squirmed beneath him. 'Jane! Stop that! It tickles!'

He stopped suddenly, grinning, his hands still pinning hers and replied, 'Really? I had no idea.'

'So what else have you planned now that you have me in this compromising position?'

'You think I don't know you could wrestle me and have me in handcuffs in two minutes flat from this position?'

'Maybe we'll leave that to another night' she grinned.

He grinned again, releasing her hands and lowering his hands to her breasts, lifting up her nightshirt so he could feel their nakedness. He bent down, his tongue exploring one whilst his hand caressed the other. After a few minutes, Lisbon began to shudder beneath him, drawing her legs up behind him, wanting him to fulfil the desire within her.

'Hurry up' she pleaded, almost already gone from his foreplay alone.

He looked up, grinning wickedly and replied softly, 'Patience, woman' as he moved her legs apart and kissed her flat stomach. Lisbon readied herself for what was to come but instead he moved his kisses to her inner thigh, then her legs and feet.

'Jane!'

'You could at least make a concerted effort to call me Patrick when we're in bed like this, Teresa.'

She gasped again, beads of sweat breaking out on her and wished she had the strength at this stage to punch him for that remark. Then he began to move his touch and kisses up her legs again. By this stage, he could barely control himself so stopped for a second to steady himself before he avoided the area again and moved back to her breasts.

Lisbon's face was red and she held a hand to her face, halfway between ecstasy and misery. He stopped for a second to look at her, allowing her time to remove her hand and give him a withering look. He grinned again when she said, 'For god's sake, _Patrick_, I was patient for twelve years, haven't I been patient enough?'

He laughed softly. 'I guess you have' he replied, before he finally gave them the release they needed.

* * *

'Can I ask you a question?' he asked later on, his arms around her.

'Anything. As long as it doesn't make me mad again.'

'Why do you love me?'

'You fishing for compliments?'

'I'm serious, Teresa, I'd like to know.'

She looked up at him to check if he was indeed being serious before placing her head back on his chest.

'Well, you know me so well, you tell me.'.

'Hell if I know. I think you're nuts to take me on.'

She laughed a little then thought for a second. It was a question she asked herself many times. How had this man woven his way into her heart?

Lisbon began to speak. 'Well, I guess to begin with I wanted to help you find some peace, nothing more. I always knew there was a good man inside of you, despite what you thought of yourself. Like you said one time before I wanted to fix you I guess. Maybe I was a bit naive when I first met you but I felt it even then, that behind the sadness and guilt was a good person inside. I always held on to that, despite some of the terrible things you've done. As I got to know you better, I realised how smart you were of course, even envied sometimes how easy you could see something I never would have picked up on. You taught me so much and even now, all these years later, every day working with you is exciting.'

She thought for another moment. 'I'm not saying exciting is always necessarily a good thing of course, but I am certainly never bored when you're around. Plus, you let me see your own weaknesses through the years, you let me see a side of you very few people get to see and you trusted me with that. And, in your own way, you always tried to protect me and fight for me, despite my objections sometimes. I didn't have a lot of people do that for me growing up.'

She paused for a second then added, 'And I guess some people would call you funny and charming at times.'

'Only some people, some of the time?'

'I guess I can see why some would think that on occasion. Also, you can be so incredibly kind and thoughtful at times it makes up for the moments you act like a jerk. Well, most of the time it does, anyway.'

'You need to work on your complimenting skill if that's what the last one was supposed to be' he replied, smiling.

She looked up at him. 'And I guess you're not too bad looking either.'

He smiled back at her, his hand caressing her face as she added, 'Oh, and you have a smile that can make me do just about anything.'

'Just about anything, eh? I must remember that.'

After a second he added, 'I still think you're nuts.'


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: A little bit of a dark chapter here, next one is going to be a little lighter again before Jane comes face to face with his suspect so hope you keep reading. Thank you again to all those who take the time to post a review, they really help me in continuing to write this little story .**

Chapter 21 - Compulsion

When they arrived at work the next day, Lisbon phoned Julia and asked her to come to the office for a word, trying her best to sound casual. Julia agreed immediately and said she would be in that afternoon.

'Well, she's coming in' she said to Jane as he sat on the couch behind her, sipping his tea.

'Good.'

Just then Abbott called the team into the conference room to get an update on progress. Lisbon filled him in on Jane's hunch.

'You know we have absolutely no proof that she's done this, Jane, if you don't get a confession from her we'll have to let her go.'

He nodded. If she has done this, don't fret, I'll get her to confess.'He then asked, 'So when's the perverted professor coming in?'

Lisbon looked at her watch. 'Should be any time.'

* * *

Professor Vance shifted nervously in his seat as Jane and Cho walked into the room. Lisbon watched on from the observation room facing them.

'Hello again, Professor, thanks for coming in to see us. This is my colleague, Agent Cho.'

'Of course, Mr Jane, I'll help in any way I can' he replied, his hands shaking as he took a drink of water.

'Tell us more about your relationship with Kerry Matthews' Cho said.

Vance shifted in his seat. 'Well, what more can I say? She was a valued student, her work was outstanding.'

Jane smirked back. 'How about Laura Summers? What do you think of her? Do you see the road we're heading down now?'

Vance turned ashen and looked at the table. Jane sat back in his chair, staring at him and said, 'We already have a statement from Laura Summers saying that you wanted to trade sexual favours from her in return for higher grades. What happened, you offered the same deal to Kerry and she threatened to blab on you to the Dean so you decided to kill her instead?'

Lisbon watched on from the observation room. Laura Summers had been too frightened to give such a statement and Jane was using its existence as a bluff to get the truth from Vance. It still amazed her how he lied with such conviction and it made her a little anxious that he could do it with such ease.

Vance shifted uncomfortably in his seat again and attempted a laugh. 'It was only a little joke I made to Laura, I didn't mean it at all seriously, naturally, she must have gotten the wrong end of the stick.'

Cho responded in his normal deadpan manner, playing along with Jane's bluff effortlessly, 'No, she didn't. You abused your position to hit on a woman less than half your age. You can forget about your job, I'd worry more about staying out of prison for murder.'

Vance squirmed again as silence filled the room, nervousness making him speak again. 'Okay I admit I may have suggested such a thing to Laura. Do you know how difficult it is Agent Cho, these beautiful young girls hanging on to your every word in class, it's a temptation any man would have trouble controlling.'

He looked at them both sitting impassively opposite him. Jane's leg was beginning to twitch in annoyance but knew he had to stay calm to get Vance to finish.

'Of course, we understand, you're only human, right?' Jane said, urging him to continue.

Vance smiled. 'Yes, that's correct, I'm glad you understand Mr Jane. You know more than anyone what a compulsion does to you.'

Lisbon watched on. The man was pushing Jane to his limit and she knew it was taking all of his strength and willpower for him not to tell this man what he really thought of him.

'So back to Kerry, what happened with her?' Cho asked.

Vance turned his attention back to Cho. 'Kerry? Well nothing, I liked her but she made it pretty clear that she wasn't interested in me in that way, she didn't threaten me with the Dean, though. She said that she would...well, let's just say she said she would remove the...equipment... I needed to enjoy such activities if I continued in my pursuit of her.'

Jane smiled at the glass in front of him, knowing Lisbon was watching, perceiving it was the type of thing she would have said if she had met a man such as this when she was at college.

Vance concluded 'You have to believe me I didn't kill her, I swear, I'm not a monster.'

Jane stood up and looked down at him with contempt. 'No, you're just not that particular type of monster' he replied, before exiting the room.

Lisbon went to meet him coming out of the room, shaking her head. 'Piece of work, huh?'

Jane nodded, putting his hand to his face, 'He had nothing to do with killing her though, I'm sure of that.' He looked around him again and sighed. 'I need a cup of tea.'

Lisbon followed him through to the break area, getting a coffee herself. Jane inhaled before taking his first sip, breathing in its smell to bring him back to himself again.

'After listening to that, I feel like I need a shower' Lisbon said, taking a sip of coffee herself.

Jane thought for a second longer then smiled wickedly. 'Well, the thought of that is certainly taking my mind of it, that's for sure.'

Lisbon couldn't help but smile back. No one but Jane would have got away with a comment like that at such a time.

He walked over, giving her a quick peck on the lips, as he perked up again. 'Why don't we grab some lunch outside before the next nutjob comes in. I could do with the air.'


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22 - Proposals

Jane and Lisbon drove to a park nearby after buying a couple of takeaway sandwiches, a tea and a coffee.

Jane took her hand as they walked to a nearby bench. It felt strange to her to be doing this with him despite the last few days. This was pretty much the first time they had seen the light of day together away from work or her place as a proper couple and she felt a little nervous and excited.

They sat down, Jane withdrawing his hand to use both to take a bite of his sandwich. They sat there for a few minutes, both eating in silence before Jane spoke.

'Why don't you ever seem to get tired of it? The death and damage that surrounds us every day doing this job?'

Lisbon shrugged. 'I do sometimes, sure, of course it gets to me but it's what we do and every time we solve a case another scumbag gets what he deserves so that makes it worth it.'

Jane smiled and moved his arm around her back, eating the sandwich with one hand now.

'You're just feeling down because you're not having fun on this case like you normally do by setting up some elaborate plan to catch the killer' she added, smiling.

Jane smiled and stroked her back. 'Mmm, well, hopefully we'll get it wrapped up this afternoon anyhow. And that's not why I'm feeling down, it's just my priorities have changed somewhat in the last few days. I'd much rather spend the day in bed with you now than wasting time talking to some loser.'

'Well, of course I'd much rather do that too but talking to that loser has made sure he'll never do that to another student.'

Lisbon then turned around and kissed him lightly. 'So you're telling me you're not depressed about work then? just feeling lustful, huh? Besides if we spent every moment in bed together you would soon get bored of that too.'

Jane smiled and caressed her face. 'I'm not so sure about that if the last couple of days are anything to go by. And well, I have a lot of years to make up for being out of action as it were. It's entitely your fault I'm feeling this way. You've given me such a wonderful taste of what I've been missing that I'm craving it more and more. You know once I get something in my head I can become quite obsessive about it.'

'I don't know whether to be anxious or pleased by that comment' she smiled.

Jane grinned and put his sandwich down, pulling her into him. He kissed her now laughing lips and replied, 'I think we both know the answer to that.'

She put her head on his shoulder and exhaled happily.

'We should take a trip somewhere' he said after a few moments.

Lisbon looked up at him. 'A trip? I've just got my job back, I don't think Abbott would be too happy about me taking time off, never mind you after the trouble you caused with the TSA in Florida.'

'Meh, don't worry about that, I'll handle Abbott. I'll tell him we're both emotionally traumatised by this case and need a break, or something like that. Besides I'm not talking for long, just a long weekend or something like that so we can enjoy this new start to our lives together away from the office.'

Lisbon laughed softly, enjoying the idea. 'So where would we go?'

'Somewhere with a beach.'

Lisbon shook her head. 'You and your beaches. You're still thinking about us frolicking in the sand, huh?'

'You forgot naked' he grinned, kissing her on her head.

He added, 'We could go back to the Islamorada. We could spend a night or two at the Blue Bird. Last time I spent a fortune on two rooms that were never even slept in, three dresses and all I got in return was a glass of water thrown in my face for the trouble.'

She laughed at the memory now, her anger at him then a distant thought.

'Maybe, we'll talk about it after the case' she replied, adding, 'I kept the dresses by the way so you may get a better look at them if we do go back.'

Jane looked at her. 'You kept the dresses? I thought you despised me so much you would have wanted nothing to do with them.'

Lisbon shrugged. 'Well they were beautiful, just because I was mad at you there was no point in cutting off my nose to spite my face.'

He laughed and pulled her nearer before noticing a slight tension in her body.

'What is it?' he asked.

'I did something else when I was mad at you that night' she said nervously.

'Go on.'

'Before he went to D.C. Marcus had asked me to marry him' she said, looking at Jane for a reaction.

He nodded. 'Oh that. I thought he had, I wondered when you were going to get round to telling me.'

'How did you know? I didn't mention it to a soul!'

'Well, when we were in Miami Beach, I joked with you about getting married, your voice turned so high in denying it I knew he must have asked you. He really was a fast mover, I'll certainly give him that.'

'Well, that evening when I got into the cab to go to the airport, I rang him and told him I'd marry him.'

Jane looked at her, unable to hide his amusement. 'Gee, you really were angry with me, weren't you?'

'Don't Jane. As soon as I'd said it I knew it was wrong. I'm a terrible person for doing that and you shouldn't look so smug about it either.'

He laughed softly, attempting to look appropriately told off but couldn't keep the grin from his face. 'You know you're not a terrible person and if I can't be smug now, then when can I be?' He added, 'Although, that's now two fiancés that I know about that you dumped, I hope when I ask you to marry me you're not going to back out of it.'

The words came out from him so casually it took a moment for them to sink in.

She stood up from the bench, deciding the best course of action was to try to forget she heard them, even though her heart was fluttering in her chest. 'We better get back to work, Julia's going to be coming in soon' she said in the coolest tone she could muster.

Jane remained on the bench for a moment, smiling, then stood up and took her hand again as they walked back to the car, his heart beginning to race with a flurry of excitement too.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: My story has become a bit larger than I first imagined so a massive thanks to everyone who is continuing to read it, it's really appreciated. A couple of emotional chapters ahead. It's going to be a bit of a bumpy ride to the finish but hopefully you'll find it worth it! **

Chapter 23 – Julia

Jane looked at Julia Myles through the observation room window before speaking to her, gauging her body language when no one was around her. He saw a nineteen year old woman, slim and tall, with long straight blond hair sitting in front of him. She sat impassively, her hands at rest on the table in front of her. She had not drunk from the glass of water left for her and appeared to be at ease.

Lisbon stood beside him and asked him impatiently 'So, what do you think?'

Jane turned his head slightly, still watching her from the corner of his eye. 'I know I'm good Lisbon but even I need to talk to her first to find out if she's our killer.'

Lisbon sighed. 'I know that but what's your first impression of her?'

He turned to face her, ignored the question and instead replied, 'Let's talk to her, shall we?', ushering her out of the door.

Before they walked into the interrogation room, Lisbon touched Jane's arm to stop him. 'Just be careful with her, will you? If she did kill Kerry then like you said she knows a lot about the two of us and if she was recruited by McAllister then he may have taught her how to push your buttons. Just don't let whatever she says get to you.'

Jane nodded. 'Don't worry, Teresa, I know what I'm doing, just trust me, okay? I'm going to be fine.' After a second he added impatiently, 'Now, can we please get on with this?'

Lisbon introduced Jane when they walked into the room.

'Very pleased to meet you, Mr Jane' Julia said calmly.

'And I you, Julia' he replied in a friendly tone. 'Now, tell us, why the hell did you kill Kerry Matthews?'

Lisbon looked at Julia patiently for a response, the years of practice of Patrick Jane shocking her during an interrogation paying off. They had agreed to lead up to that particular question but, as usual, Jane went off script to get a gut reaction from Julia.

Julia looked at Lisbon, a half-smile of surprise on her face before composing herself again to look at Jane. She replied, 'Well, I'd heard that you were surprising Mr Jane, but I didn't expect that question quite so soon.'

Jane smiled at her. 'Who told you I was surprising? Anyone I used to know?'

Julia returned the smile. 'Well, obviously I'm just relaying what I've read about you really and Michael told me that you had surprised him, telling him not to go after the people who killed his sister, after you did the exact opposite in your own life. Who else do you imagine would have told me anything about you, Mr Jane?'

Lisbon shifted uncomfortably in her chair and wanted to move the conversation back to Kerry. Even from her tone and the brief interactions between them so far she was certain now that Julia was the killer. She was acting differently to when she had met her previously, the act of sympathy and outrage she had put on then vanished from her now. She even seemed to want them to know that she was responsible, an innocent person would have been furious or defensive against such an accusation but she sat there smirking about it instead. They had no evidence and Julia knew that, she had been too careful.

Lisbon looked briefly at Jane whose eyes sat transfixed on Julia's. She was trying to bait Jane somehow and he seemed to be enjoying playing this game of cat and mouse with her too but Lisbon was worried how far she was going to push him, afraid that she would reveal something to him that would make him retreat back into a dark place again. She was about to move things back to Kerry when she felt Jane's hand on hers under the table, giving her hand a little squeeze. She supposed this was his way of comforting her out of the thoughts he had somehow picked up on, asking her not to interrupt and telling her that he knew what he was doing so she said nothing, letting him continue.

Jane sat back in his chair, his hands around the back of his head now and said to Julia, 'Why'd you decide to come here to go to college, I'm sure there are plenty of similar courses you could have taken closer to home?'

'Is it a crime for me to come to Austin? I liked the sound of the course here.'

'I've checked and no other criminology courses in the country are studying Red John though.'

Julia raised an eyebrow. 'Is there a question attached to that statement?'

Lisbon had enough of the to and fro between them and asked her directly, 'Did you know Thomas McAllister?'

Julia smiled again, Lisbon resisting the urge to reach for her over the table to wipe it off her face. She said, 'I always heard you were more direct and impatient than Mr Jane here, Agent Lisbon. I see that's true.'

Jane's rage grew inside of him. He had little problem with McAllister talking about him to this woman but the thought that he had discussed Lisbon with her too made his blood boil.

Lisbon glared at Julia. 'Answer the damn question.'

Julia looked away for a second then turned back and answered, staring directly into her eyes, 'Why of course I did, Agent Lisbon.'

Lisbon's face crumpled a little despite her best attempt to keep it neutral.

Before she had a chance to respond Julia spoke again. 'He was sheriff in Napa County, wasn't he? It's only a short distance from where I grew up, my parents and I would visit Napa regularly. My father even went hunting with him sometimes.' Julia looked at Jane directly after speaking the last sentence, a smirk on her face.

Jane's amusement with her disappeared. He replayed her words to himself in his head, trying to understand the hidden meaning behind them. Could it have been possible that there was another man out there who had participated in the Red John murders, another man he would have to kill if he was responsible for Angela and Charlotte's deaths? Or was she simply trying to unnerve him, send him down a false path of agony and despair? He studied her face intently, but his heart was beating so fast it made it almost impossible for him to breathe, never mind read her.

Lisbon saw the panic rising within him and took his hand, noticing briefly the smile on Julia's face as she did so. She rebuked herself for doing that in front of her but her only priority now was Jane.

'Jane, let's take a minute outside, okay?' she said to him, his eyes still held on Julia.

'Jane' she said louder, making him turn around to look at her, bringing him out of his stare at last.

He let go of her hand and left the room, headed to the bathroom and vomited.

* * *

Abbott and Cho had been watching on from the observation room. Abbott came into the room as Lisbon sat motionless looking at this woman smirking in front of her.

'If you'll excuse us Miss Myles' he said, touching Lisbon on the shoulder, 'I need a word with you outside, Agent Lisbon.' Lisbon turned around and left the room with him silently.

They walked into Abbott's office where he practically made her sit down in the chair. He didn't sit in his own chair but in the chair beside her instead. She still hadn't uttered a word.

He left for a few minutes and came back with a cup of sweet tea, handing it to her gently. She took it from him automatically and took a sip. 'Jane' she said suddenly, beginning to rise from the chair.

He pushed her back down to the seat lightly. 'It's okay, Teresa, I've sent Cho to check on him.'

She nodded and took another sip of tea.

'Just stay here and drink your tea, okay, he wasn't the only one to get a shock in there.'

She started to regain her strength and think more clearly. 'Julia's father-'

Abbott nodded. 'I've already set Wylie and Fischer to work on it, see if we can figure out the connection.'

She nodded again, taking another sip.

She began to speak out loud but not to Abbott in particular, just vocalising the thoughts running through her mind.

'I know I should go talk to him but I don't know what to say. I don't think I can bear it if I have to watch him go through this all over again. I love him so much but I can't go through it again, I can't witness him becoming that man again' she said softly, tears streaming down her face.

Abbott, a man who seemed so emotionless a lot of the time, sighed heavily and took her hand gently.


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24 - Choices

Jane sat on the same bench he and Lisbon had occupied barely an hour previously. As Julia's words filled him, he felt the darkness and hatred within him begin to return. He couldn't face the look of concern on her face he had seen before he left the room so had ran away here instead of having to see it again.

He cursed himself for still being such a coward, running away as usual when times got tough, even if it had only been to a park this time. He told himself he should have never boarded that plane, should have let her be with Pike.

His mind was full of these thoughts when he felt someone sit down on the bench beside him. He glanced over to see Cho. He had thought Lisbon may have found him here but never expected Kimball Cho.

'Hey' said Cho, just like he said to him every morning.

'Hey' said Jane, almost wondering if this was a hallucination. Deciding it wasn't he asked, 'How the hell did you find me?'

Cho replied 'We have a tracking chip embedded in you.'

Jane blinked a few times. 'What?'

Cho sighed and answered, 'Tracked the GPS on your phone.'

'Oh' replied Jane, nodding, supposing the earlier remark was Cho's idea of humour.

'So, what are your plans?' Cho asked, straight to the point as usual.

'Plans?' He hadn't thought of one, burying himself in self-pity instead.

'You don't know if any of what she said to you is true, instead your mind has gone to the worst case scenario straight away.'

Jane nodded and sighed. 'What if the worst case scenario is true?'

'Then we find the son of a bitch and arrest him, simple as that.'

'You know very well it's not that simple for me.'

'Why not?'

Jane looked at him incredulously and wondered for a second if this man knew him at all.

Cho continued. 'I know you did what you thought you had to do before. If I had been in your position no doubt I would have done the same. But that was then. It's different now, you have someone you've made a commitment to I presume and she's given up a great new job and a good man to be with you because of it. You know what it would do to her if you went off on another one of your vendettas.'

Jane nodded, knowing every word he heard was true. He replied, 'You're right but if this man.-'

'But nothing' Cho interrupted. 'You have two choices. Number one, be the man she deserves by putting her feelings above your own for once in your sorry life or number two, go after him, but beforehand tell her it's over between you and get out of her life, for good this time.' He sighed and continued, 'I won't let you drag her into it this time, Jane.'

Jane had never heard Cho speak as much in all the years he'd known him and looking into his eyes knew that the veiled threat at the end was not a bluff.

When they got back to the office, Jane noticed that Lisbon was at her desk. She had obviously been crying and was sitting there staring at nothing in particular on the screen. Cho glared at him then walked over to Fischer, presumably to get an update on the case.

Jane stood there sheepishly for a moment before taking a deep breath and going over to her desk. She looked up, a mixture of worry and anger across her face.

'Hey' he said nervously.

'Hey' she replied, trying her best to sound calm.

He exhaled again and said softly and apprehensively, 'I believe they let Julia go for now?'

She replied, straightening items on her desk so as to avoid his eyes, 'Yes, we have nothing to hold her on for the moment but Abbott's sent someone to keep an eye on her.'

'Good' he replied, searching for her eyes and biting his lip.

'We should have a better idea if there's a connection between her father and McAllister by the morning' she said, as businesslike as she could, her eyes now back to the screen.

Jane nodded, rocking on his heels lightly. He closed his eyes and then opened them again and spoke a little louder. 'Can we talk, Teresa?'

She finally looked up at him, swallowing a lump in her throat. 'Sure, what is it?'

He rolled his eyes. She was certainly not going to make this easy for him. 'Not here, can we talk at your place?'

She looked down at her desk, closing her eyes briefly and breathed deeply. She fought off the tears forming and stood up quickly, grabbing her bag and said steadily, 'Okay, let's go,' marching to the elevator in front of him.

They drove back to her place in silence. Jane was trying to find the right words to say to her and Lisbon was fighting the urge to either break down in tears or rip Jane apart, she couldn't decide which.

When they entered the house, Lisbon went straight to the bottle of scotch she kept at the back of her cupboard.

'Drink?' she asked, pulling out two glasses.

'Yes, thanks.'

She poured two drinks in silence then walked over the couch and sat down, holding her glass in her hand.

Jane took a swig and joined her.

She slammed the glass down on the coffee table in front of her and looked up at him. 'So, you were the one who wanted to talk, so talk.'

He put his glass down quietly and looked into her angry and hurt eyes.

'I'm not quite sure where to begin.'

'Okay, let me ask you a question then. What are you going to do if it turns out Julia's father worked with McAllister in the Red John murders?'

He gazed into her eyes, a hundred words forming but said only one back. 'Nothing.'

She blinked quickly, unsure for a certain if he had said that, his voice just a whisper.

She asked him more softly, 'What if it turns out he helped him kill Angela and Charlotte?'

Jane looked down, taking another drink and replied again, 'Nothing.'

Lisbon sat in shock. She had thought he had wanted to come back here to tell her he would have to kill this man if he was involved and was all ready to fight with him about it. She had not expected this answer instead.

'Nothing?' she asked quietly.

Jane put his glass down and looked at her again, nervously taking her hand. 'Teresa, that man took everything from me but somehow I found you in the midst of all that despair. I don't want to turn back into the man I was then. I want to be better, a better man for you, a better man for us. It's going to be the hardest thing I've ever had to do if this man did help him in any way but I won't do anything that will jeopardise us being together. That is the most important thing to me now, not vengeance. Nothing is going to tear me away from you ever again.'

Tears were coming down her face as she hugged him tightly and she whispered, 'Thank you.'


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: Wow, thank you all so much for reviewing and getting my story to over a hundred reviews and followers, I'm truly overwhelmed by the response.**

**Okay, so the first section is M rated so please don't read if you blush easily, you won't miss out on the main plot if you leave it out.**

Chapter 25 – Moving

After a little while they decided to go to bed. Jane finished cleaning his teeth, Lisbon beside him already changed into a nightshirt cleaning hers. He kissed her lightly on the shoulder and said to her, walking into the bedroom, 'I told you I wasn't going to be the easiest relationship you ever had.'

He undressed to his boxers and got into bed, sighing heavily. Lisbon slipped under the covers beside him, his arm already outstretched so she could place her head on his shoulder. 'Well, if you recall I tried an easy relationship for a while there but it didn't work out for me for some unknown reason,' her lips turning into a smile.

Jane glanced down at her, her patience with him still a mystery. He kissed her gently, then harder as he briefly recalled earlier the notion of choosing a life without her, the intensity of his emotions spilling into passion, making him want her now more than he had ever felt for anyone in his life. She kissed him back, deeper still, digging her nails into his back. She pulled him on top of her, craving his actions now to back up his earlier words along with her own need to release the pent up anger and frustration she had felt earlier. He pulled at her nightshirt, pulling down a corner again so he could kiss her neck and then bit her shoulder as their passion turned into a primal lust neither had experienced before.

They carried on like this, tossing in the bed, grasping at each other, unable to quench their need for each other's bodies. Jane reached down, pulling her panties off before moving his fingers closer to satisfy her. However, instead she pulled them away roughly, clawing at his boxers and moving herself closer into him, whispering urgently 'Now, quickly, Patrick.' At the sound of his first name being spoken in such a provocative manner, Jane discarded his underwear swiftly and entered her roughly, both of them gasping in relief. He began to move gently but Lisbon had other thoughts, pushing her hips into him deeply, scratching his back again as she pulled him towards her. Jane reciprocated, moving his hands to her buttocks and pulling her closer still, their tongues entwined whilst thrusting harder and harder as she wrapped her legs around him, both of them moaning louder with pleasure with every motion as they rocked in harmony. He looked at her on the verge of release and whispered to her, 'I want to see it in your eyes, Teresa, open them for me.' He slowed down as she opened her eyes, her passion for him making her eyes appear a dark emerald green. He held eye contact with her and moved gently, bringing himself to the verge of release himself before making a final push that made them both collapse shaking onto the bed.

* * *

Lisbon woke up and moved her hand to the other side of the bed, expecting to find Jane's chest there. Instead she found it empty and panicked for a moment, wondering briefly if the passion they had shared the night before had revealed too much of himself to her and if it had made him pull back from her in the light of day. Then she heard a clattering in the kitchen accompanied by a happy humming sound and grinned, getting out of bed.

'Hey there, you do realise it's just gone six? What on earth are you doing up at this time?' she asked, finding him sitting at the table eating eggs and drinking a cup of tea.

'Hey there' he grinned. 'Well I woke up and was starving, we didn't have anything after lunch yesterday and, well, we worked up quite an appetite during the night.' He kept grinning as she looked away blushing, going over to the coffee he had brewed for her.

'No point in getting shy now, Lisbon' he teased.

She turned round smiling and replied brazenly, 'Who says I am? I wasn't the only one who was a little out of control last night.'

He smiled, a little awkward himself now, got up and walked over to her. The corner of her nightshirt had fallen down, revealing a bare shoulder, a tiny welt visible on it. He touched it lightly and said softly, 'This ok?'

She smiled in return. 'I think I've had to deal with a few worse things in my life than a lovebite. Besides, I think I scratched your back up pretty good so I'd say we were more than even.'

He smiled back, placing his arms around her waist. 'Well, sometimes it's worth going through some pain to get to the pleasure, isn't it?', he said, kissing her tenderly.

He caught something in her eyes and he added, 'Did you think that I'd left, when you woke up this morning?'

She nodded. 'For a second, maybe.'

He held up her face, looked her in the eyes and replied, 'Okay, just so we're clear, I promise I will never leave you again, Teresa, you're well and truly stuck with me.'

'Okay, good.'

'Eggs?' he asked, turning round quickly and breaking some into a bowl without waiting for a response.

'Sure' she replied, sitting down to drink her coffee.

He said with his back to her, adding salt and pepper to the bowl and beginning to whisk, 'In fact, I've decided to move in here.'

She almost spat a sip of coffee out. 'Sorry, what did you say?'

He threw the contents of the bowl into a frying pan and said again, 'I've decided to move in. I mean, I can't imagine a morning where I don't wake up beside you and I know you feel the same way about me so what's the point in waiting?'

He turned round to find an awestruck Teresa Lisbon looking back at him.

'Jane, you can't just decide something like that without so much as a discussion and besides we haven't even been together for a week yet' she countered.

'Well, we're discussing it now, aren't we? And we've been together for years, just not in this way and even if you count just that it's been almost a month. If you remember that was almost enough time for you to decide to move to move to another state with a different man.'

'Two weeks of that month I was in D.C. so it hardly counts. And I was with Marcus for a few months, not just one.'

'Meh, details, woman. You know in your heart you want this too so why are you putting on this charade that you don't?' He dished out the eggs to her and sat opposite her, taking a sip of his tea calmly.

'I'm not saying I don't. I just think we should take some more time to think about it.'

Jane nodded, putting his fingers to his lips as if he was thinking over her response. After a moment he replied, 'You're right of course, no problem, take as much time as you need.'

Lisbon studied his face for a moment. 'You're just going to ignore me aren't you, just move your stuff in anyway?'

Jane grinned and shrugged. 'Well, you're not exactly a clotheshorse so there's plenty of room in the closet for my suits and the only other thing I need is a drawer, there's plenty of room there too.'

Lisbon looked back at him open mouthed, however, the corners of her mouth began to turn into a smile.

Jane realised he had won so pressed forward. 'Look, I'll keep the Airstream for cases and for those rare nights where I might annoy you and you need some peace and quiet, how about that?'

Lisbon tried to think sensibly. 'There are practical matters too, like bills and that sort of thing.'

Jane rolled his eyes. 'You're really scraping the bottom of the barrel for reasons we shouldn't do this now, Lisbon. Just tell me what I owe you each month and I'll deposit the money into your account. Or, we could set up a joint account for such matters, if you prefer.'

Lisbon sat and took a sip of coffee, looking at him, unable to think of a response.

'Good. Glad that's settled', he added, getting up from the table and looked out the window, grinning.

* * *

'I'd like to go shopping for a few things to put around the place, maybe some plants and some more cushions for the couch. And we definitely need some new cookware and bedding', Jane said as they drove to work as he embraced the idea of living in a house again with someone.

Lisbon turned her head to look at him briefly before turning her eyes back to the road. 'Well, before you start remodelling my home do you mind if we try to close this case first?'

Jane shrugged. 'Oh hush woman, I'm excited and I thought we decided it was _our _home now.'

Lisbon smiled back but became more serious as they entered the parking garage of the FBI building. Before they got out of the car Lisbon touched his arm. 'You know today might be hell for you, are you sure about wanting to see this through? No one would blame you if you wanted to sit out of this one.'

Jane replied breezily, 'Ah, I'm fine. The sooner we get it closed, the sooner we go shopping', beginning to exit the car.

Lisbon stopped him again. 'Patrick, I'm serious. I know you meant what you said last night but I'm still worried about what you might hear today.'

He held her hand and her gaze. 'Okay Teresa, if I think I'm going to lose it in there I'll let you know, I promise.'

She nodded and kissed him gently.


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26 – Jason Myles

As they walked into the office, Abbott walked towards them. 'So, how are you two this morning then? Ready to get back to work?'

They nodded and Lisbon replied, still a little embarrassed at breaking down in front of her boss the day before, 'Yes, much better thanks, just want to get this one over with.'

Abbott answered, 'Good, and how about you Jane? I take it I don't have to put you in holding in case you decide to take a trip to Fairfield?'

'For once Dennis, no, you have nothing to worry about.'

Abbott looked a little surprised and looked at Lisbon for a second before turning his attention back to Jane. 'Well, that'll certainly make a nice change.' Maybe she can change him into a better person after all, he thought to himself. He added, 'Come on, the others are in the conference room, I believe Wylie has an update for us.'

Cho, Fischer and Wylie looked up as they walked in. Jane smiled thinly and nodded to Cho, his way of thanking him for making him see what was important the day before. Cho nodded curtly in return, acknowledging the gesture.

After sitting down, Abbott began. 'So, Mr Wylie, I believe you have an update for us on Jason Myles, Julia Myles' father?'

'Yes, we've checked him out and he's actually in a care home at the moment, he suffers from Alzheimer's disease. According to doctor's reports, it has transgressed rapidly over the last couple of years.'

Jane listened intently, his head bowed as Lisbon asked, 'So, I take it we can't talk to him?'

Wylie shook his head. 'No, the people at the care home say that he hardly remembers who he is some days.'

Cho said 'So, we're at a standstill then.'

Wylie replied, a little nervously, 'Well, yes and no. Before this disease took over him he was actually quite a brilliant doctor himself, specialised in obstetrics. Well, I looked online and he guest lectured at quite a few events around the country for many years. Some of the lectures were even posted online.'

Abbott, growing impatient, interrupted him. 'Is there a point to any of this, Mr Wylie?'

'Well, yes. As I said, some of the lectures were posted online so I have begun to look at the dates of some of them to see if I could rule him out of any of the Red John murders.'

Jane suddenly lifted his head and stared at Wylie.

Wylie continued, a little more nervous as he caught Jane's gaze. 'Well, the first date I checked was the one where ...well, the one you might be interested in hearing about Mr Jane and...well, it turns out that he was giving a lecture in New York on that particular evening.'

Wylie looked back at Abbott. 'Obviously it doesn't clear him of all the murders Red John committed but it's a start.'

Jane sat motionless, still staring at Wylie. Lisbon exhaled loudly.

Fischer asked 'Are you sure, Wylie, the footage hasn't been tampered with or anything like that?'

'No, I've checked the metadata myself, everything is clean, there were also some comments on the footage so I got in touch with a couple of the people who posted them and they've confirmed he was certainly there. I also double checked with the venue and their records back it up too, he was definitely there that night.'

Abbott looked at Wylie. 'Very good work, Mr Wylie, keep at it to make sure we can positively rule him out.'

Abbott turned his attention to Jane. 'So, Julia was obviously bluffing you yesterday, what do you think we should we do about that now?'

Jane's smile returned as he sat back in his chair and looked back at Abbott. 'I think we better get her back in here, believe me she won't do it to me twice.'

As the group broke up Jane caught Wylie on his way out and said to him softly, 'Thank you Jason, you have no idea how happy I was to hear that particular news.'

Wylie, a little uncomfortable upon seeing this new sincere side to Jane, so used he was at seeing the jovial side to him instead, shifted on his toes and muttered 'No problem, just doing my job', exiting the room quickly.

Jane went to the break area to get a cup of tea and found Lisbon there getting a cup of coffee.

When she saw him she hugged him profusely with a huge sigh of relief.

He held her waist and kissed her tenderly, tension erased from his face. 'A little relieved about that, eh?'

She laughed a little. 'Thank god that part's over with at least.' She then broke off from him to grab the cup again and added, 'I can't wait to get that lying bitch back in here now!'

Jane raised his eyebrows to her. 'Am I going to have to restrain you now instead?'

She softened and replied, 'Do you really think you can get her to confess? I mean, like Abbott said, she was able to bluff you of all people yesterday, there are not a lot of people in this world that can do that convincingly.'

Jane nodded, thinking, taking a sip of his tea, and replied, 'You're right, there aren't.'


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27 - The Photograph

Before Julia arrived back at the office Jane went over to Wylie's desk.

'Wylie, are there any photographs of Julia and her family I can get a look at?'

Wylie was a little startled as he had been engrossed in his screen. 'Um, yeah, I think so.' He tapped a few keys and brought up a Christmas holiday photograph. 'Found this online, it was an e-card sent out by Julia's mother Eva last Christmas. It must have been just before they had to put Mr Myles in a care home.' Jane didn't have a clue what an e-card was nor did he care as his eyes were drawn to the picture. A happy scene was in front of him, Jason was sitting dressed in a Christmas sweater with cloth reindeer horns on his head, Julia putting a decoration on the tree and Julia's mother sitting on the couch beside Jason sipping what looked to be a glass of eggnog. Jane's eyes were transfixed on the mother realising he had met her once before.

After getting a printout of the photograph he raced over to Lisbon.

'We need to talk before Julia comes back in.'

'Why, what is it? What's that you're holding?' she asked, her eyes merely glancing up at him from her paperwork.

He came closer and put the photograph in front of her, staring at her intently.

She looked at the photograph and then at Jane. 'What's this about?'

He crouched down beside her, tapping the older woman in the photograph. 'Do you recognise this woman?'

She looked at him still confused, then stared at the woman in the photograph again and shook her head. 'No, Jane, I've never seen her in my life, why, who is she?'

Jane stood up quickly, looking around the room and rolling on his heels, his mind in overdrive.

'Jane, who is she?' Lisbon asked again.

He looked down at her and answered through pursed lips, 'I'll explain but we need to bring Abbott in on this too.'

As they arrived at his office, Jane was fidgeting on the now non-existent ring on his left hand. Lisbon became more worried as this was a sure sign he was feeling stressed.

Abbott looked up as they sat down. Jane placed the photograph in front of him as he had done with Lisbon and asked him if he knew her. Like Lisbon, Abbott had never seen the woman before in his life.

'So what's this about?' Abbott asked. 'I presume this is Julia's mother so what now, don't tell she's involved in this too?'

Jane fidgeted some more. 'Yes and no. Well I mean, I don't think she has anything to do with Kerry's death directly but I met that woman once before.'

'When?' Lisbon and Abbott asked in unison.

'The day I killed McAllister.'

Jane continued, 'I had shot McAllister in the church but he was still alive. I was about to finish him off when this woman, that woman, came into the church.' He leaned over the desk, tapping her photograph again. 'At first I thought she was just a visitor to the church who hadn't a clue about what was happening. I told her to leave and that I was with the police but she kept walking up to me. All of a sudden she pulled a knife on me. I sprang back from her and grabbed a candle I think and hit her with it. By that stage McAllister was crawling out of the church so I left her there and chased after him.' He took a breath and continued, 'I thought she was unconscious so would have been found along with Bertram's body but you're telling me she wasn't?'

Abbott looked back down at the photograph and shook his head 'No, there was no woman in the church that day when we found the other bodies.'

'Why didn't you mention her before now?' Lisbon asked.

Jane shrugged and rolled his eyes. 'Well, I had other priorities that day if you recall, I honestly have barely thought about her since then. I presumed she was part of the Blake Association so would have been picked up either that day or another along with the others.'

'So she's not on your list of names that Bertram left?' Abbott asked.

Jane and Lisbon exchanged furtive glances, Lisbon turning her eyes to the floor.

Jane answered 'No, she wasn't.'

Abbott studied Lisbon's body language then leaned back in his chair. 'The list is bogus, isn't it?' he announced.

Jane shrugged, knowing he was found out. 'Not really, I mean there was a flash drive that Bertram left but we weren't able to decrypt the names on it.' He smiled, shrugged again and added, 'Sorry.'

'Sorry? That's all you've got to say, and I assume from your posture you knew about this too Agent Lisbon?' Abbott said, his voice getting louder.

Lisbon looked up but Jane interjected, 'She knew nothing about it, I swear, it was all my doing. I had to find a way for you to give into my demands. You left me no choice really.'

Abbott widened his eyes. 'Oh, so it was all my fault was it?'

Jane replied, moving forward in his chair, getting into his stride, 'Well, frankly yes, if you hadn't lied to me to get me off the island and then been so stubborn and pig headed once I got here I never would have had to resort to making up a fake list in the first place.'

Lisbon interrupted, 'Jane, stop it, that's enough.'

Abbott sat back and sighed as Jane sat back in the chair again. Abbott finally spoke again. 'Okay, so we're all here now anyway so we'll leave talking about that matter to another time. And how stupid do you think I am that I don't know Lisbon was in on it too? But for now let's focus on this case, I'll see if I can get a search warrant for the house in Fairfield and have local FBI question her to see where she was at the time of Kerry's death. After that I'll see if I can get her here to question her about McAllister.'

'Okay, good' Jane replied.

As they left the office Lisbon pulled Jane into an observation room.

Jane smiled and went to put his arms around her, pretending he got the wrong idea of why she pulled him into the room.

'Are you crazy?' she exclaimed, pushing his arms away. 'What the hell are we going to do? Abbott can put you in prison and god knows what he can do to me.'

Jane grinned at her. 'Will you relax woman? Abbott's not going to tell a soul about the fake list.'

'And why not?'

Jane rolled his eyes. 'Because the thing Abbott hates more than anything else is being outfoxed. You think he's going to tell his superiors he was duped? No chance. Also, he knows what a great team we make so why on earth would he want to change that? Out of spite? Again no, he's too much of a pragmatist to let his ego get in the way of good results.' Jane leant back on the wall. 'I'm glad he knows the truth, it's better for everyone in the long run.'

Lisbon sighed and finally relaxed her shoulders. 'So, what about this woman, then? What made you want to see a photo of her anyway?'

'Well, like you said, there are not too many people who can bluff me so I thought there may be more to it than a McAllister connection to Julia alone. If it's taken her over two years since his death to kill someone, her training could have been continued by someone else where he left off. It was just a hunch, really, to look at family members first.'

'Julia may have killed before now, though, we just don't know about it.'

Jane nodded. 'Maybe, it's possible.'

'You think the mother will crack?'

Jane shrugged. 'Probably not. She was in the church that day, she was evidently his back up. He must have trusted her completely for her to be there. Thinking about it now, I don't think she was just another disciple to him, she was much more important than that.'

'So what does that mean to us now?'

'Well, if she was important to him then she must be pretty powerful in herself for him to see her more than just a plaything to be used when needed like Lorelei or any his other followers. If she has picked up where he left off and continued to influence Julia's behaviour over the last couple of years then she is the one person that is Julia's Achilles' heel. She is the one chink in her armour. I just have to find a way to exploit that.'

'You think you can do that?'

Jane grinned in response.


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28 – Round Two

Julia sat waiting patiently in the interrogation room while agents in California went to visit her mother Eva. Lisbon and Jane observed her from the other side of the mirror. Lisbon said, 'She came willingly once again, no question about why she was being dragged back here or anything.'

Jane nodded beside her, 'Well, she can't wait to see how much of an impact she made on me yesterday, wants to see how shook up I am today.'

'Do you think she knows that we know it was a bluff yesterday?'

Jane shrugged. 'Not sure, her posture would infer she doesn't but that might just be an act.'

Fischer walked in. 'Well, Eva Myles was at the symphony in Los Angeles on the night of Kerry's death. We have three witnesses who corroborate it. There's no way she was in Austin.'

Lisbon asked 'Is she being brought to Austin for questioning about McAllister?'

Fischer nodded. 'Yes, apparently she is more than willing to come talk to us here about him. She's in the air now.'

'Well, that's strange, how about the search warrant?'

'Nothing linking her to Kerry's murder or McAllister as of yet.'

Jane took his eyes away from Julia and asked Fischer, 'Are there still prescription pads in the house belonging to Jason Myles?'

Fischer shrugged. 'Don't know. His licence was revoked about a year ago I think but I'll get them to check. Why?'

'Well, Kerry was drugged right, so maybe-'

Fischer finished his sentence, 'Maybe that's how Eva or Julia got hold of the drug. It would also give us a charge to hold them both on for a while at least. Wylie has also found further proof that Jason Myles couldn't have participated in at least four of the Red John murders, it's looking more and more likely he wasn't involved, at least not directly.'

Jane nodded. 'Good. I don't think so either. But it doesn't matter at this stage even if he was, he's as good as dead anyway.'

Fischer glanced at Lisbon uncomfortably and she exited the room. Lisbon said, 'So, are you ready to do this?' straightening up, pointing to Julia and beginning to walk out of the room.

Jane took hold of her arm and said softly, 'Wait a second. I was thinking I may be better doing this without you.'

Lisbon looked at him, eyes wide open. 'Excuse me!'

'Just listen, okay. There are things I may say in there that are going to be hard for you to hear. It may be better if I take Cho in with me.'

'Like what things? Have you forgotten I know what you're like by now, I know you're going to say just about anything to get to her, I'll be fine, don't worry, okay? And besides, even if I'm not in there with you, I'll be watching from here anyway, so what's the difference?'

Jane held on to her arm and looked around the room. 'I don't know yet what things exactly and I know it doesn't make any logical sense but I fear I won't be able to concentrate fully on questioning her if I'm worried about upsetting you at the same time. If you're on the other side of the glass I'll be able to block out those feelings.'

Lisbon thought for a second. 'I'm sorry but this can't be the way it is from now on, Jane. We're a team, right? Just because we're in a relationship now it can't change how we behave at work. I'm telling you I'll be fine whatever you say in there. Even if I do get upset, I know whatever you are saying to her is for the right reasons so just keep that in mind. Just be your normal arrogant and annoying self in there as usual and let's nail this bitch, okay?'

Jane thought for a second and nodded.

As they entered the room Julia looked up, smirking at Lisbon and then at Jane.

'Mr Jane, how are you feeling today? You left in a little hurry yesterday, hope it wasn't something I said?' she smiled.

Jane took a seat and answered brightly, 'thank you Julia for your concern, I'm feeling much better today, thanks.'

Lisbon said, 'Thank you for coming back in, hope you're not missing out on too many classes.'

'No problem Agent Lisbon, I'm happy to help any way I can.'

'Sorry to hear about your father by the way, Alzheimer's is a terrible illness.'

Julia replied, unsmiling, 'Yes, it is, he was once a great man.'

'I'm surprised you didn't decide to follow him into the medical profession if you looked up to him so much.'

'Well, we don't all choose to follow in our father's footsteps and turn out like them, do we, Agent Lisbon?'

Lisbon held her eyes, resisting the urge to rise to the bait.

Jane asked, 'Did you ever accompany your father and McAllister on their little hunting trips?'

'Yes, when I got to eight or nine I began to go with them sometimes.'

'Did you ever kill anything yourself?'

Julia replied, 'Of course', staring directly at Jane as she had the day before. She paused and added, 'A few rabbits then deer too as I got older.'

Jane could see through her game now and said to her, a smile beginning to form on his face, 'We know your father had nothing to do with the Red John murders.'

Julia's smile faltered a little. 'I'm relieved to hear it. I have no idea why you would have thought he had.'

Jane returned the smile. 'Yeah, we're not really interested in talking about him anymore. We're much more interested in what you thought of McAllister himself.'

'Well, he was a great hunter, very driven once he got a target in his sights.'

'Not always, I'm still standing after all.'

Julia snapped back, her guard falling from her face, 'Well that's because he didn't want to kill you Mr Jane, if he had you would have been dead a long time ago.'

Lisbon replied, 'Sounds like you're defending a serial killer.'

Julia regained her composure. 'Of course not, I'm just looking at it from his point of view after studying him, that's all.'

Jane said, 'Well, in any case, he made a serious lack in judgement in not killing me sooner', laughing at the end of the sentence.

Julia glared back at him.

Lisbon asked 'Tell us about your relationship with your mother.'

'What's to tell, I love both my parents, I had a great upbringing.'

Jane answered 'No you don't, at least not your father anyway. You despise him for becoming the shell of the person he once was, don't you?'

'That's a terrible thing to say, Mr Jane.'

Jane shrugged and rested back in the chair, thought for a second, and looked around him. 'So how do you feel about your mother? Good mother?'

'I love her deeply of course, she's the most important person in my life.'

Jane nodded, deciding that was the truth, his ability to read her much easier now that he had ruffled her feathers.

He replied, 'Ah, so you're not a sociopath then, just a psychopath? Oh, and that's a pity. You're going to miss her when we send her to prison.'

Julia's smile left her face but she recovered quickly. 'Prison? Why on earth would you send her to prison?'

Julia bit her lip slightly making Jane smile, knowing that he was getting to her slowly. She asked 'Why are you asking me about my mother anyway? What does she have to do with Kerry's death?'

Jane replied, leaning further back in the chair, 'Oh, who knows, perhaps nothing. Oh, did I forget to mention that your mother and I are, well, acquainted?'

Julia's guard seemed to slip a little more. 'Really? How?'

Jane replied, smiling fully and moving forward again to stare into her eyes, 'Oh, she tried to kill me the same day I murdered McAllister.'

Julia sat thinking, her eyes blinking, trying to make sense of the words just spoken.

Lisbon smiled. 'She didn't tell you that? I thought you two were so close.'

After a second, Julia replied calmly 'Well, what proof do you have? She would have been arrested long before now if you had any. It's just your word against hers, Mr Jane.'

Jane nodded. 'True. But you've _studied_ me right? You know the lengths I'll go to get what I want. You know I don't care about evidence or proof to get that. And even if I did go to court, I've killed two men in cold blood so far and never been sent to prison, you don't think I have the ability to sway the jury for whatever justice I decide to seek out against your mother too? So, you have a choice, Julia, tell us why you killed Kerry Matthews and we'll just send your mother to prison, who knows you two may even be able to share a cellblock if you're lucky. Or continue to say nothing, and your mother will wish that I'd sent her to prison.'

Jane spoke the words slowly, his eyes boring into Julia's. She saw the dark intent behind them and looked down, thinking of a response.

Fischer and Abbott looked on from the observation room. Fischer said 'Jeez, he's threatened to murder her mother, he's gone too far this time, whatever she says now she can say was under duress.'

Abbott replied 'No, he was careful not to issue a direct threat, let's see how it plays out.'


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29 – The Confession

Julia sat motionless for a few seconds before raising her head to look at Jane. He was still facing her, his eyes dark and stern.

He decided he needed to prod her a little, his threat to her mother not enough to get her to talk so he decided on a different tact. 'It's liberating, isn't it? Taking someone's life like that, feeling the power it gives you, it's intoxicating' he said softly to her.

Lisbon suppressed a gulp beside him, doing everything in her power to not put him off but every part of her being didn't like where this conversation was heading and was screaming at her to leave the room. Perhaps he had been right; perhaps she didn't want to see this side to him any longer after all.

He continued, his eyes never leaving Julia's. 'When your hands were around her throat what did you say to her, what were the last words she ever heard? Tell me, Julia. I know you want me to know. We've both had the same experience, share yours with me.'

Julia replied softly, in an almost seductive tone, 'Tell me about yours first.'

Lisbon shifted uncomfortably, unable to sit still any longer. Jane took her hand beneath the table, all the while holding Julia's gaze.

Jane replied, 'Okay. That's fair I guess. Well he was shot already so didn't put up much resistance. Guess it was the same for you. You had injected Kerry so she couldn't fight you off either. I can understand that, she was a strong girl, there's no way you would have been able to do it so cleanly without the drug.'

'I thought you were going to talk about your experience first.'

Jane nodded, failing at his first gambit of getting the confession he would have liked. He braced himself for what he was about to say and continued.

'Sorry, getting ahead of myself. Okay, so he lay on the ground. I sat astride him and just looked into his eyes to begin with. I saw the terror and fear in them and rejoiced in the feeling of absolute happiness it gave me. As I put my hands around his throat he began to gasp for air. I enjoyed that feeling even more, hearing his lungs empty and knowing I was responsible for doing that to him, thrilled that I was the last face he would ever see.'

Lisbon sat still but pulled her hand away from Jane, a sick feeling inside of her growing with every word he spoke.

Julia sat mesmerized at his words, instead of the sick feeling they had brought upon Lisbon, she was entranced by them. She asked 'Did you say anything to him before you finished him off?'

Jane shook his head and lied. 'No, I didn't say a word, just relished in the feeling.' After a moment he saw the glimmer in her eyes and said softly, 'Your turn now.'

Julia was almost hypnotised by his tone. 'Yes, I killed Kerry Matthews. I strangled her and I loved every moment of it.'

Jane sat back, still looking into her eyes. 'Why Kerry?'

Lisbon exhaled, more secure in the standard questions coming from him now.

'You don't know why? Really?'

Lisbon answered 'Enlighten us.'

Julia's gaze shifted to Lisbon. 'Why do you think McAllister never killed you, Agent Lisbon. After all, you were, _are_, the closest person to Patrick Jane?'

'What's that got to do with why you killed Kerry Matthews?'

Julia replied, smiling once again, 'Why it's got everything to do with it, Agent Lisbon.'

Lisbon sat stunned, waiting for a further explanation but then Julia said loudly, 'I'm getting a little tired of answering questions for now, I guess I better ask for an attorney.' She sat back in the chair, folded her arms and looked calmly at both of them.

Lisbon got up abruptly. 'Fine, you're going to need a hell of a one!', exiting the room.

Jane sat studying Julia for a few more seconds before leaving the room himself.

Lisbon marched into the observation room to speak to Abbott to find out his view on what he just heard, Jane following behind her. Abbott sent Fischer in to make the formal charge against her and arrange her counsel. Lisbon, unwilling for now to look Jane in the eye, left the room to get a cup of coffee.

Jane remained in the room with Abbott, watching her as she left the room, a worried expression on his face.

'Did I go too far?' he asked Abbott quietly.

'You didn't threaten her mother directly and you got a confession from her, albeit a limited one for now, so I would say no, you didn't for a change' Abbott replied.

Jane nodded.

Abbott eyed him curiously. 'Or are you asking me on a more personal level if you went too far?'

Jane shrugged.

Abbott smiled. 'What's this, the great Patrick Jane asking me for tips on what to say or not say in front of his girlfriend during an interrogation?'

Jane smiled thinly. 'You know you're enjoying my discomfort a little too much, Dennis.'

'You know Lisbon better than anyone so you already know the answer to that.'

'Gee, thanks, Dr Phil.'

'But the two of you better figure something out that works for you both if you want to continue working together. The last thing I need around here is a domestic matter getting in the way of my case results.'

Jane rolled his eyes and replied, 'You're all heart, Dennis' before exiting the room.

When he got to the break area she was standing there, her eyes engrossed in the coffee she was holding.

'Hey' he said brightly, getting a cup of tea.

'Hey' she replied, acting as breezy back. 'Great job in getting her to confess, what do you think she meant by the reason she killed Kerry was somehow because of McAllister not killing me?'

Jane studied her. Lisbon was pushing all other thoughts about what he had said back there to the back of her mind. The two of them were quite expert in doing that, he thought, shoving back uneasy feelings so they didn't have to face them.

He answered 'Don't know. I'll have to think about it some more. But I got her to crack once, I'm confident I can get the whole truth from her.'

Lisbon nodded, looking back into her coffee.

'I told you not to come in there with me. I told you I may say things that would upset you. You were the one who told me you would be okay with whatever I said' he said harshly from the other side of the room.

Lisbon nodded again, still unable to look him fully in the eyes and answered quietly, 'I know.'

Jane nodded and stomped out of the room leaving her staring into the cup.

* * *

When Lisbon walked back to her desk Jane was sitting on his couch, sipping his tea thoughtfully. He looked up at her as she approached.

Instead of sitting at her desk she sat beside him, looking at him for a second. He turned around to look at her, raising his eyes for her to speak.

Lisbon shifted uncomfortably and said softly 'You're right, I did say that. It was just...strange the way you described the feelings you had. Was that true, what you told her? Is that how it felt to you?'

Jane sighed, closed his eyes for a second and leaned back in the couch. He moved himself forward again. 'What does it matter? It's done with, isn't it? What does it matter how I felt then? You think I wanted to start dwelling on all of that again? It was the only thing I could think of that could help me connect with her to get to her. It worked, wasn't that the most important thing?'

Lisbon thought for a second and began to speak but Jane interrupted her.

'To answer your question, some of what I told her was true, some wasn't so can we just leave it at that? That man plagued our lives for ten years, mine for even longer than that. Are you going to let him to continue to win? Let him ruin what we have now? You said we should focus on the future not the past so let's do that, shall we?'

He exhaled loudly, taking a sip of tea with shaking hands.

Lisbon replied and nodded, taking a hand from around his cup, 'Okay then, let's do that.'


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter 30 - Eva

'I'm sorry for getting a bit snippy' Jane said after a few minutes. 'It's just hard for me to talk about that stuff with you. I don't give a damn what anyone else thinks of me but when you pulled your hand away...'

Lisbon replied 'I shouldn't have done that, I'm sorry.'

'No, I get it, believe me. it was the normal reaction for any decent person hearing something like that. I just don't want to mess this up and I thought I had when you pulled away from me.'

'You haven't messed it up, okay? But you're right, it's hard for me to see you act and talk like that and then reconcile it to the person I've gotten to know, especially after the past few days. I've always known there are many sides to you and I guess in a way that's what made you so intriguing to me all these years. I can't pick and choose the sides of you I want you to be, I need to accept you for every part of you, including your _many _flaws. It's just going to take me a little while.'

Jane smiled back. 'Intriguing, huh? I think I like that, makes me sound like James Bond.'

Lisbon chuckled a little. 'I think you need to work out a little more if you want to be James Bond.'

'I thought you weren't trying to change me!' he grinned.

Just then Fischer came over and informed them that Julia was being sent down to holding for the night and that she would be available to talk again in the morning once her attorney arrived. Eva Myles was due to come in soon.

'What do you want to do about that?' Fischer asked Jane.

'What do you mean?' Jane replied.

'Well, do you want to question her first or leave it to Cho and me? We don't know for certain that she knows you're here. We could talk to her first, see what she tells us before sending you in there.'.

Jane thought for a second. 'Oh, she knows I'm here, why else would she have come so willingly to Austin. But maybe you're right, question her first, I'll watch on and see what I make of it. Talk to her about McAllister but don't mention I'm here, see if she asks about me. And don't mention that her daughter has already confessed either.'

Fischer's eyes widened and she answered sarcastically, 'Okay, any more orders, boss?' before turning round and walking towards Cho.

Lisbon sighed, moved back on the couch and rubbed her temples. 'God, the Islamorada sounds so inviting at the moment.'

Jane smiled at her and wished there weren't so many people around, imagining kissing her deeply in the warm sand and removing her stress, along with a few items of her clothing.

She looked back at him and a smile returned to her face too. 'Stop that.'

'Stop what?'

'Looking at me like that, we're at work, remember?'

He came closer to her face, his hand beginning to snake around her waist and looked at her with even more desire, 'Are we?' his lips millimetres away from hers.

Her lips parted automatically and her breathing accelerated, wanting him to take her right here on the couch. Never had a man instilled such wanton feelings in her before and she found her craving for him overwhelming.

But instead he gave her a quick peck and got off the couch and walked away, whistling.

'Bastard' she muttered under her breath, knowing it was his payback for her joke about working out earlier.

* * *

Lisbon and Jane stood in the observation room as Eva Myles was brought in to be interviewed by Cho and Fischer. She was of medium build and height with dark brown hair.

'How do you feel, seeing her again?' Lisbon asked. 'You're sure it's her, right?'

Jane shot her a glare that confirmed it was. 'Fine. She's hardly the first person that's tried to kill me.'

'And she won't be the last, I'm sure.'

Jane smiled as Cho and Fischer began the questioning.

* * *

Cho began 'So Mrs Myles, we believe you knew Thomas McAllister, otherwise known as the serial killer Red John.'

'Yes, I did.'

'How did you meet him?'

'Through my husband, they've known each other for over twenty years.'

'And how did he meet him?' Fischer asked.

'Shooting club I think' she replied.

Fischer nodded. She had gone through all of McAllister's contacts that they had found in his house and never come across this family before which explained why they had never even been looked at as part of the Red John/Blake Association investigation.

She asked 'Did he come to your house often?'

She shrugged. 'I don't know. What's often? Maybe a couple of times a month, sometimes more, sometimes less.'

'Where were you on the day he died?' Cho asked.

A moment of hesitation came across her face and she answered, 'You mean the day he was murdered?'

'Same thing' Cho replied blankly.

'I don't remember' she replied.

'You don't remember the day he died? It was on every news channel and you knew him, hard to believe you don't know where you heard the news?' Fischer asked.

She shrugged in reply.

They kept on questioning her for a few minutes more but it was obvious to Jane they were getting nothing out of her.

He turned to Lisbon. 'I think we should have a crack at her. If anyone is going to get a reaction from her it's the two of us.'

'I can understand you but I'm sure she won't care if I'm there or not.'

'Don't you remember what Julia said, this case has to do with you too, who knows, maybe more even than me.'

Lisbon rolled her eyes. 'Thanks, that's heartening to hear.'

Jane tapped on the mirror, gesturing to Cho and Fischer it was time to change over.

As they walked into the room, Eva looked up, smiling at Jane.

As they sat down Jane said brightly 'Nice to see you again, I hope security have checked you for weapons.'

Eva smiled back.

Lisbon said 'Look, we know where you were the day McAllister died-'

'Was murdered' Eva interrupted, glancing at Jane.

Lisbon nodded. 'Okay, murdered. We know you were in that church with him. So tell us what your connection is to him.'

'We were lovers.'

Lisbon's eyes widened at the directness of the response.

Jane said 'You know for someone who wasn't much to look at he sure had a way with women.'

'Well, you know how that is, Mr Jane. Maybe you are aesthetically a little more pleasing to the eye but you both have that same power.'

Now it was time for Jane's eyes to widen. 'Really, we do? Since when did I acquire a harem?' he laughed.

'Just because you don't sleep with a lot of women, doesn't mean you don't have power over them, Mr Jane'. She looked at Lisbon who was slightly blushing and added 'Although it looks like you're finally remedying that situation.'

Jane wished that Lisbon wasn't so easy to read for once. 'And how do you know how many women I've slept with? I can't imagine Sheriff Thomas McAllister who I only met on a few occasions before I killed him suddenly talking about me in that regard, can't say we ever discussed it. Red John, though, he would certainly be aware of something like that.'

Eva smiled thinly.

Lisbon asked 'You've basically just told us that you knew McAllister was Red John. Want to admit to anything else?'

Eva replied 'I quite shocked you that day, Mr Jane, didn't I?'

Jane nodded. 'You did, yeah, but you didn't stop me from doing what I had to.'

Lisbon said 'So now you're admitting to attempted murder, you're making things a little easy for us, aren't you?'

'I'm dying' Eva replied. 'Whatever you pin on me I'll never spend a day in prison by the time it gets to trial so I thought it was about time I met you both formally at last. I heard so much about you both from Tom I feel like we are old friends. So, shall we begin properly this time? I'm guessing you want to start by discussing Kerry Matthews.'


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N: Okay, so this is another emotional chapter. Hope you keep reading, I promise a happy ending! Thanks again for all my regular and new reviewers and followers, it means the world to me you're taking the time continuing to contribute. **

Chapter 31 – The Past

Lisbon said 'Go on.'

Eva replied 'Well, I'm presuming by now that you've questioned my daughter Julia about Kerry's death-'

'Murder' Lisbon interrupted.

Eva gave Lisbon a small smile. 'Okay, murder. You have evidently looked into her family background and have come across my husband and me. He, of course, would have been ruled out as having anything to do with it so naturally your focus has turned to me.'

She turned to Jane. 'Tell me, Mr Jane, how surprised were you when you saw me again? When did you know our paths were going to cross again because of this case? Before you saw me today or only when I arrived here?'

Jane smiled, ignoring the questions. 'We just wanted to see how or if you're connected to Kerry's death which you have all but admitted to just now. But Julia was the one who made us look into your family. I doubt we would have even come across you or your husband had it not been for her trying to taunt me about McAllister. But that was your plan wasn't it, to get her to mention your husband, perhaps hoping to send me into a spiral whilst at the same time coming across you?'

Jane added, 'You know Julia's already confessed to the murder of Kerry Matthews, we just wanted to see how you're connected to it.'

'I don't think so Mr Jane, your mind games aren't going to work on me.'

'Ask Agent Lisbon, she's an easy read for you. Ask her if she's confessed.'

Lisbon looked at Eva and nodded.

Eva replied, 'Oh well, I was hoping she would have been stronger than that but evidently you weren't as shook up as I anticipated by her words so you were able to trick her into confessing somehow. Tell me, did she fail in her delivery when she mentioned my husband or did you come across evidence instead he wasn't involved in Tom's crimes? I can't imagine you were unaffected in any case Mr Jane, even just for a little while.'

Jane looked at her blankly, hatred building up inside him.

Eva asked 'Why did she say she did it?'

Lisbon replied 'She didn't yet. You want to fill in the blanks?'

'I think I owe that to Julia to explain. After all, she'll be the one who may go to prison for it.'

Lisbon answered 'You don't think she'll sell you out in the process? And you seem very unaffected by the thought of your daughter going to prison.'

'I am very much counting on it that she will sell me out. Then it can be argued that she was merely a pawn in my game. So she won't go to prison for long. Or perhaps not at all, it may well be argued that she was so mentally abused by me she was incapable of making her own decisions.'

Lisbon glared at her, in shock that a mother could be talking about her daughter in such terms.

Jane asked 'And where does McAllister fit into all this?'

'Well, he taught me how to explore the hidden depths and darkness of my own soul. It was my duty to impart that insight to my daughter too.'

Jane shook his head. 'Do you know how absolutely crazy you sound? You realise you're still listening to the rantings of an egomaniac who's been dead over two years?'

'You know what it means to love someone Mr Jane. Just because someone is dead doesn't mean you stop loving them or act how you think they would have wanted you to for them. You above all people know that.'

Jane's expression turned to steel. Reasoning that her actions after McAllister's death were in any way similar to his after Angela and Charlotte were murdered was sickening to him. It was taking every drop of willpower for him to control himself. She really had learned from the best how to get to him, that was for sure, he thought to himself. She was definitely different to all the other woman he had come across who were disciples of McAllister. They had merely followed him and done his bidding. This woman was undoubtedly his equal, perhaps even a soul mate for him.

Lisbon noticed the change in his disposition. His face looked like thunder and she was almost surprised that he hadn't already exploded at this woman. She was finding it hard to control herself.

Jane asked the question on his mind. 'What made you so different from the others, he didn't just use you like he did someone like Lorelei, for example?'

Eva replied 'Strange how that particular name was the first to spring to your mind, Mr Jane', glancing across at Lisbon but not replying to the question.

Jane inwardly ticked himself off, he should have known better than that. He would have to refocus if he was ever going to get the better of this woman.

Lisbon decided to change the subject and go back to the case. 'So are you admitting that you were the one that told Julia to kill Kerry Matthews?'

'Well, I wouldn't say I told her to kill her. I merely encouraged her to do it if that was what she felt she wanted to do.'

Lisbon asked 'Why Kerry, did you know her?'

'No, I never met her but from how Julia described her to me I certainly know the type.' She looked directly at Lisbon and smiled.

Lisbon's rage boiled up inside of her and she challenged her 'Really? Tell us more.'

Now it was Jane's turn to feel uncomfortable at how the conversation was going but he knew there was no stopping Lisbon.

'Well you know, Agent Lisbon. From what I hear she was a pious goody two shoes, outwardly compassionate, strong and confident but really she was a sad and lonely child inside, her heart long broken by a dead mother and an absent father, a childhood full of hardship, sacrifices and fear. As much as she believed she was tough and independent, her future probably lay in finding an abusive man like her father herself, a man she thought she could fix like him but who would ultimately manipulate her for his own means time and time again. I think Julia did her a favour, really, who would want a life like that, Agent Lisbon?'

Lisbon stared at her, unable to think of a reply, her mind a mess or bad memories.

Jane glanced over quickly, seeing Lisbon crumble a little inside but resolutely appearing strong on the surface. He so wanted to drag her out of the room, hold her and reassure her that those days were over but knew by doing so would give Eva the upper hand. Instead he turned to Eva. 'Sounds like the same life you had with McAllister to me.'

'Does it Mr Jane? You may find it hard to believe but he never manipulated me a day in his life. He used to come to me and tell me what he had Lorelei and some of the others do for him, we used to sit and have a glass of wine together and laugh about how easy it was for him to get those women to do some of his bidding for him. It wasn't the same for him as actually doing the deeds himself but it was a different type of emotion, a different type of power. We really had a fun night when he told me Lorelei had bedded you. That must have been quite a relief for you after all those years of celibacy?' She laughed a little as she spoke the last sentence.

All the while, Abbott, Fischer and Cho were watching from the observation room. They had become increasingly uncomfortable throughout. Abbott finally said 'Right, that's it', walking out of the room. He entered the interrogation room beside. 'Mrs Myles, we're charging you with aiding and abetting Julia Myles in the murder of Kerry Matthews. There will be more than likely other charges being added in due course. Jane, Lisbon, come outside now.'

Jane looked up surprised by the sudden entrance but acquiesced, glad to get Lisbon out of there at least.

Once outside Abbott asked them both 'You okay? I thought I better get you out of there before one of you reached for her across the table. To be honest, I would have had a hard time not justifying it if you had.' Jane shrugged and looked at Lisbon, more concerned with her feelings than his own. Lisbon replied 'Yes, I'm fine', Abbott and Jane both knowing the opposite was true.


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: I've tried to add some humour and sexiness to this chapter as they've been lacking over the last couple to balance out the drama. Hope you enjoy. I can't reply to the guest reviewers but thank you so much for taking the time to read my (not so little now) fanfic and for leaving your comments.**

Chapter 32 – Avoidance

They were still standing with Abbott as Cho and Fischer walked out of the other room. Cho remained stoic as usual, nodding to them both but Lisbon saw pity for her in Fischer's eyes as she walked by. Jane noticed it too, knowing Lisbon hated appearing weak and being pitied perhaps more than even he did.

When Abbott walked away Jane said softly, 'Let's go home, shall we? There's nothing more we can do here today. I think we both could do with the break.' He smiled gently, keeping his tone light.

Lisbon looked around, knowing she would crumble if she looked at him directly. 'Yes, okay, good idea' going towards her desk to get her bag. She kept her head down, just in case she caught another look of concern from Fischer. Jane stood at the elevator waiting for her.

As they both got in, he went to put his arms around her but she pushed them off, still avoiding his eyes. 'Don't Jane, okay, wait until we get home, I don't want to become a blubbering mess here.'

He nodded and moved back, standing beside her, both of them looking towards the door. After a few seconds she reached for his hand that he gladly gave her as they both rode down to the parking garage.

Jane drove them both home, observing her in his mirror as she sat in silence looking out of the window. He knew her thoughts were back there, back to when she was a teenager. In all the years they had known each other she had rarely spoke of either of her parents. He knew the bare facts of course and could imagine what her life had been like then but no more. He had respected and understood more than anyone that need in her to keep those walls up and had never asked her any questions on the subject. It was the only topic he had been afraid to broach with her as they became friends. He knew that her father was an alcoholic and an abuser but didn't know precisely how bad it got for her. Eva was right, had his manipulation and toying with her all those years really been any different to the abuse she had suffered by her father? Had she traded in one man who physically abused her to a man who emotionally abused her instead? He sighed heavily. The noise shook Lisbon out of her thoughts and she looked at him. 'You okay?' she asked. He nodded, fighting back his own tears now.

When they got to the house Lisbon put her bag on the table and threw her jacket over a chair. Jane came behind her and said gently, 'Is it okay if I get a hug now?'

She turned round and fell into his arms, sobbing finally into his chest.

He stood there, stroking her hair with one hand and the other firmly around her waist. He whispered, 'Ssh, it's okay, just let it go Teresa, just let it out.'

After a few minutes she moved away, a little embarrassed at the outburst. 'Sorry', she mumbled, still not catching his eyes.

Jane came closer again and took her chin in his hand, making her look up at him. She tried to glance away but he moved his face closer so she looked at him. 'Never apologise for showing your feelings to me Teresa, I love you. I'm here for you, just let me be, okay?'

She looked into his eyes and nodded. 'I need to clean myself up' she whispered back, heading to the bathroom to wash her face.

Jane busied himself in the kitchen, making a pot of camomile tea for them both.

She came back and took a cup, giving him a gentle kiss. 'Thank you.' She sat down on the couch, grimacing slightly at the taste.

Jane joined her. 'Camomile, good for stress. I think caffeine would be a bad idea at the minute.'

She nodded and shot him a faint smile, taking another sip.

He put his tea down and sat back on the couch, putting both his arms around her, gently kissing her on top of her head as she gradually curled up beside him, stroking her hair again and wanting nothing more for her than to feel safe and loved.

'Are you okay?' she asked. 'I wasn't the only one getting a few shots thrown at me back there.'

'Meh, I'm fine. I'm used to people trying to mess with my head by now, it's like water off a duck's back.'

Lisbon nodded. She didn't entirely believe him but he was certainly more experienced in someone playing mind games with him than she was. 'Sorry. I shouldn't have let her get to me.'

'Will you stop apologising please?'

He was about to ask her if she wanted to talk about what Eva had said earlier but sensed she wasn't ready to discuss this yet so decided to change the subject, going back to their default position of avoidance, for now at least.

'Shall we go out to dinner tonight?' he asked.

Lisbon turned around slightly and replied, 'Go out to dinner?'

He nodded. 'Yes, dinner Lisbon, you know where people go out for a meal together? I was just thinking that we've never even had a proper date yet and here we are living together. It occurs to me that we're not following the usual social conventions of a romantic relationship.' He tilted his head, his heart swelling when he saw a smile forming on her face.

She put her cup down and looked up at him, a broad smile beginning to light up her face now. 'Yeah, like we're such a normal traditional couple.'

Jane shrugged, beaming himself now. 'Well, why don't we try for tonight to be just that, Just two people who love each other going on a dinner date? A night of love, romance and music!'

Lisbon laughed 'Who do you think we are, Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire?'

'I've always preferred Gene Kelly and Debbie Reynolds myself.'

'Oh, Singin' in the Rain, huh? Yeah, that's a good movie.'

'I never knew you liked musicals, why was that?'

'It would have only been another thing for you to tease me about.'

Jane answered, caressing her cheek, 'I never knew you were such a romantic at heart.' After a moment he added, 'Teresa, our love will last until the stars turn cold.'

Lisbon answered, recognising the quote from the film, 'See now why I didn't tell you? I'm going to be getting cheesy lines thrown at me from now on.'

* * *

Jane insisted they get dressed up for dinner. Well, he insisted Lisbon put on a dress for their first proper date. He was in his normal suit, lying on the couch watching TV, waiting for her to get changed. She had resisted initially but had succumbed in the end, secretly excited about going on a real date with Patrick Jane after all these years. She shook her head at the thought, they were living together and she was feeling almost nervous as she zipped up her dress, they really were a strange couple. She hadn't wanted to go somewhere flashy so they had decided on a cosy Italian restaurant that served pizzas and pasta nearby they could walk to.

Lisbon walked out and Jane did a double take, eyeing her and letting out a wolf whistle. She was wearing a knee length midnight blue lace dress, fitted around the waist, slightly flared with a v neck.

'I take it you approve then' she said coming towards him. She added 'You better because these shoes are going to kill me.' Jane looked down to see she was wearing heels.

'If I have to carry you I will, my sweet.'

'Really? You don't want to do your back in at your age.'

He sat up on the couch as she came closer and looked her up and down again, the smile on his lips becoming wider each step she took.

As she bent down to kiss him gently he held on to her hips. 'Although you know, maybe we could just stay home instead' he said, beginning to move his fingers over then underneath the fabric of her dress.

She pulled away quickly. 'No, this was your idea, now let's go before we do some more damage to that poor couch.'

He smiled and shrugged, pulling her in for a deep kiss before she reached the door. 'Okay, that should hold me for a little while' he said as he opened the door for her.

When they arrived at the restaurant Jane ensured they were seated in a cosy table at the back. He didn't know how much self control he had to stop his hands wandering and knew Lisbon would be a little more amenable if she was not in full view of the other diners.

They ordered a bottle of white wine and looked at their menus. Jane put his down after ten seconds to gaze at Lisbon instead, his eyes taking in every feature of her face in the dim light of the restaurant. He began to move his eyes down to her cleavage, the v neck of the dress and a push up bra enhancing her assets considerably, a devilish grin evolving on his face. Seeing this out of the corner of her eye she said without looking up from her menu, 'Stop looking at me like that, we're in public.'

Jane replied seductively, 'No I don't think I will, it's not my fault the other diners here don't have someone as beautiful as you to stare at.' He added, 'Or touch', placing a hand underneath her skirt on her smooth bare thigh under the table.

Lisbon turned her face at his touch, putting her menu down slowly and gazed back at him, eyes widening. He had thought she would have shoved his hand away immediately but she smiled instead. He wondered if she was really daring him to go further. He was trying to read her as the waiter came over to take their order. Jane jumped at the interruption, knocking over a glass of water with his free hand.

As he removed his hand to dry the table Lisbon whispered to him, 'Smooth, real smooth', grinning widely.

They ordered dinner and flirted some more. Lisbon ate mushroom tagliatelle ravenously while Jane had seafood risotto. They talked some more about musicals and Italian food, enjoying each other's company without discussing work for a change. Lisbon finished and sat back, sighing happily. She said 'That was delicious; I think I ate too much though, this waistband is digging into me.'

Jane grinned. 'Well, I could always loosen it for you', his hand sliding to the zipper at the back.

She pushed his hand away and answered, 'You didn't learn your lesson from earlier? Now you've had a couple glasses of wine you're feeling braver now, huh?'

He grinned back and then said, more seriously, 'A little yeah, are you ready to talk about what Eva said yet?'

The smile fell from her face. 'No, not really. I know I'm a hypocrite, I've been at you for years to let me in, for you to open up to me and now it's me that can't open up.'

Jane nodded. 'It's okay Teresa, take as much time as you need, there's no rush, honestly, just tell me whatever you want when you want.'

Lisbon smiled a little and nodded.

Jane kissed her hand and picked up the dessert menu.

After a few moments she said, 'Thanks for this, for tonight, Patrick', seeing the glint in his eye as she spoke his first name.

He turned away from the menu and replied, 'Now that's not fair, Teresa. You know what saying my first name does to me.'

Lisbon tilted her head and replied, feigning innocence 'I'm sure I don't know what you mean...Patrick' whilst moving closer to him and placing her hand on his thigh, moving her fingers up and down coming tantalisingly close to his groin.

He let out a low growl making her smile more.

Then he leaned in closer and whispered in her ear, nibbling it as he did, 'You sure you want to play this game with me?', moving his lips down to the pulse point in her neck.

Her breathing quickened as she felt his warm mouth and tongue against her skin. She closed her eyes and bit her lip, moving her hand further up. He gulped a little, the strain on his pants taking hold of him and he finally moved her hand away unable to resist her touch any longer, exhaling and taking a sip of water to recover.

She smiled in victory, taking a sip of wine. It wasn't often she got one over on Patrick Jane.


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: Okay, a little more sexy time in the first section. It's not too graphic but feel free to skip it, it won't make a difference to the story.**

Chapter 33 - Sex & Honesty

As they finished their ice cream together, the crowd in the restaurant thinned out. They could hear the soft opera music being played now and they sat silently listening to the tones of Puccini. There was a break, presumably to change CDs Jane supposed and the more lively 'Volare' came on.

'Want to dance?' Jane asked hopefully.

'Another night, okay?' Lisbon replied, happy to just listen and tap her foot along.

As they exited the restaurant Lisbon took Jane's arm as they strolled home.

'How are the feet? In need of a piggy back?' he asked.

'Not at the moment.'

As they walked on a downpour of rain came out of nowhere. They dived into a nearby bus shelter to take cover.

'Do you want me to do my Gene Kelly?' Jane asked, motioning to the pavement in front of them, his blond curls dripping.

'Don't you even dare' replied Lisbon, smiling.

Jane noticed her dress was sticking to her, droplets of rain glistening on her face and her breasts, her wet hair beginning to turn curly.

He took off his jacket to put around her, pulling her in close for a deep lingering kiss as he did so.

'This moment is going to take pride of place in my memory palace, I think' he said, looking down into her eyes.

'You are so corny, you know that?' she laughed.

The downpour was soon over and they resumed their walk home.

When they got to the door Lisbon inserted the key, Jane behind her kissing her neck eagerly, his hands fondling her through her wet dress.

'Will you stop that until we get inside? My neighbours will be thinking I'm some type of harlot.'

Jane grinned behind her, continuing his assault of kisses on her neck and whispered 'If what happened in the restaurant tonight was anything to go by then I would say you are.'

Lisbon laughed, still not able to get the door open.

Jane turned her around impatiently, his tongue delving into her mouth hungrily as one of his hands grabbed a breast through her dress. The other hand deftly opened the door behind her and they both flew in, Lisbon almost falling to the ground in the process. They both laughed for a second then their eyes became serious as desire took over. Jane slammed the door behind him and walked towards her. She backed away to the kitchen table, her smile tempting him further.

He backed her up against the table as their kissing became more frantic, Lisbon pulling at his wet shirt as Jane's hands wandered up her thighs, too eager to deal with taking off her dress. She gasped as he reached his goal, throwing her head back then pulling at his trousers. With one hand he let them and his boxers fall to the ground as she balanced herself on the table, ready for him. He took her quickly as they rocked together until they both cried out in ecstasy.

After they finished Jane said breathlessly 'I'll never eat eggs from this table again without thinking about this', his wet shirt sticking to his chest. Lisbon pulled her dress down laughing, kissing him on the cheek as she went to the bedroom to get changed for bed.

* * *

Jane woke after a couple of hours sleep and absentmindedly moved his arm to cuddle Lisbon to find her missing from the bed. He turned on the light and noticed it was 3.45am. After checking the bathroom he went to find her in the living room. She sat curled up on the couch in her nightshirt looking at a photo album, her fingers tracing over the photos and a sad expression on her face. She had not yet noticed him standing in the doorway. Jane thought for a second, wanting for her to talk to him but remembering his promise to let her tell her things in her own time and moved back so as not to intrude on this private moment for her. However, upon stepping back, the floorboard beneath him creaked, making her look up.

'Sorry' he said. 'I woke up and you weren't there, I...I'll go back to bed and leave you to it.'

She thought for a second and replied sadly, 'That's okay, do you want to take a look with me?'

'Only if you want me to.'

She nodded and he came and joined her on the couch.

She sat up and placed the album on her lap, Jane sitting beside her.

He said softly, pointing to a photo of a woman smiling and eating an ice cream at the beach and that could have been Lisbon's double, 'That's your mother, huh?'

She nodded, smiling sadly, her fingers tracing the image again. 'That was the last vacation we all took together, we went to Myrtle Beach. I think that's why I liked California. I know it's on the other side of the country but being near the beach always reminds me of that vacation.'

Jane nodded, placing an arm around her shoulders. He knew the feeling, he always thought of building sandcastles with Charlotte every time he was at the beach.

He pointed to another one of three boys that looked like the same vacation. They sat facing the camera proudly, looking like they were pushing each other out of the way. 'So, that's Tommy obviously, James and Andrew, right?' he asked.

She nodded.

'How old were they when this was taken?' he asked.

Lisbon replied 'I guess Tommy was ten, James eight and Andrew five I think'.

Jane nodded. 'They look like quite a handful'. He didn't think he could admire her any more but she had mothered these children shortly after this was taken.

He smiled as he pointed to the next photo. 'Ah, now who could this be?'

She smiled back, both of them looking at a photo of a teenage girl with short bobbed chestnut hair dressed in a t-shirt and jeans, laughing happily as she sits in a dodgem car, having just rammed some unsuspecting driver. Jane looked at her, mesmerised by the innocence and carefree smile on her face. He had seen Lisbon smile plenty of times but never like this. He swallowed a lump in his throat and joked, 'And you said I was an aggressive driver.'

She laughed. 'I didn't say that, I said you drive too fast.'

Jane smiled but then became serious as his eyes went to the last photo on the page. A middle aged man was in front of him, sitting on a park bench with his arms outstretched, smiling widely into the camera. 'Your mother took this photo' Jane said quietly.

Lisbon nodded. 'How did you know that?'

Jane shrugged. 'It's obvious in his eyes, the love he had for her.' He didn't want to besmirch her father to her as much as he felt the need.

Lisbon nodded.

Jane waited a moment as Lisbon collected her thoughts.

'You don't have to tell me everything, you know, even showing me this is enough for now' he said softly.

She shook her head. 'I want to tell you more.'

Jane nodded, rubbing her shoulder with his thumb. 'Okay.'

Lisbon breathed deeply and began as Jane sat quietly beside her, taking in every word. 'You know, when I think of my childhood it's like a play with two acts. One before my mom died and one after. Almost like a dream turning into a nightmare. When my mom was alive we were just a normal family. I'm not saying we were the Brady bunch or anything but life was good, you know. We went on picnics, to ballgames, ate dinner together, all the normal stuff'.

She sighed sadly and continued. 'When...when she died it was like a switch was activated suddenly in my father's brain. He went from being one of the most loving men in the world to a shell of himself pretty much overnight. We were all grieving naturally and relatives kept telling me that he was heartbroken but that he would pick himself up. But he never did. I needed him so badly then, Jane, for him to just take me in his arms and tell me he still loved me but he never did, he never held me again.' Tears were falling silently down her face as she stared ahead.

Jane sighed, watching her, almost willing her to stop talking so she didn't have to face those memories.

She sniffed and continued, making her voice louder after a few deep breaths, anger beginning to fill her thoughts now. 'I had to pick up the pieces, put my brothers to bed, feed them, help them with their homework. That's how it was for a while. There was a routine of sorts I guess. My father would go to work, give me the money for the bills and so on and I would take care of things. In the beginning he was never violent, just used to come home and plant himself in front of the TV, I think he was still in shock at losing her. So I managed, told myself that it would only be for a little while and that he would get better soon.'

She sighed again, holding her head in her hands.

'You don't have to go into this now, Teresa, if it's too hard for you-'

Lisbon shook her head. 'No, if I don't tell you know I don't know when I'll be ready again.'

'It was about six months after her death that he hit Tommy. I was in the kitchen getting dinner and the boys were supposed to be doing their homework in the living room. I could hear Tommy and James arguing a bit. That was nothing new, they had always been like that, still are today actually. Then I heard my father's voice roaring at them both then what sounded like a slap in the face. I was so surprised for a moment I couldn't move, just stood there at the stove. My father had barely spoke in those first six months and when he did it was just a mumble or a whisper. If I hadn't come in and saw Tommy rubbing his cheek and the other two staring at my father I wouldn't have believed it.'

'He had never hit any of you before?'

Lisbon shook her head. 'Not like that, not out of anger. He believed in taking a ruler to us occasionally if we were out of line but that was it.'

Jane nodded. 'That night. He had been drinking before that?'

'Yes. He always liked a drink but after she died I noticed more empty bottles around the house. I was so busy I hardly noticed how much more he took. Maybe if I had noticed sooner, been able to get him to face up to things-'

Jane took her hand. 'None of this is your fault Teresa, don't even think about blaming yourself for any of it. He was the one who made the choice to do what he did. He was the adult, not you.'

Lisbon nodded but Jane knew there was still guilt inside of her.

Lisbon continued 'Anyway, it just got worse really after that. He would go to work, come home, if he felt like lashing out he would. It continued like that until he killed himself a few years later.' Her voice ended in a whisper, exhausted by telling the tale.

Jane sighed, almost wishing the man was still alive so he could kill him himself for putting Lisbon and her brothers through that.

'How bad were the beatings? For you, I mean?' Jane asked softly.

Lisbon looked at him. 'That's just it, he hardly laid a finger on me. The only times I ever got hurt were when I got in the way of him beating one of my brothers. Once he knew it was me he would stop hitting them but a few times it took him a moment or two to realise I was there so I copped a few right handers every now and then. I was the only one who could get him to stop when he was like that.' She shrugged afterwards.

'You reminded him of your mother, that's why he couldn't knowingly harm you' Jane said.

Lisbon nodded.

Jane thought for a second, a question forming in his mind that he was afraid to ask.

Lisbon regarded him. 'What is it?'

Jane asked quietly, 'You reminded him of your mother, did he ever...'

Lisbon nodded in understanding then shook her head. 'No, never. My father was a lot of things but not that.'

Jane nodded, grasping her hand, thankful for that at least.

Lisbon sat back on the couch, Jane putting both his arms around her and they sat in silence for a few moments. Lisbon said 'There's more to explain about the night he killed himself but I'm not ready yet. I'm not sure I'll ever be to be honest.'

Jane nodded, kissing the top of her head. 'That's okay, take all the time you need, I think you've shared enough for tonight.'

Lisbon felt his arms around her and knew his thoughts were with what Eva had said. She said quietly 'You're not the same, you know, as him? Eva was wrong about that.'

Jane sighed. 'And I thought I was supposed to be the fake psychic. You can't deny there are similarities in the way I've treated you though.'

Lisbon nodded. 'Okay I guess I can agree to that. I have felt used and manipulated by you but the difference is that I never had any expectation that you would do otherwise. You were pulling stunts from practically the first day we started working together. I knew your background; you were a conman after all. I wasn't dumb enough to realise that you wouldn't con me sometimes too so I was more prepared for it when it happened. Like you said, he was the adult, my father, so he wasn't supposed to treat me like that.'

Jane replied, smiling a little, 'So you're saying I was more honest in my dishonesty and abuse of you? Isn't that an oxymoron?'

Lisbon laughed a little. 'Perhaps it is but I know now at least you're trying to change because you love me, it's more than he ever did.'

'Yes I am trying and yes I do, very much.'

**A/N: I'm not sure of the name of Lisbon's third brother, I don't recall it ever being mentioned in the show but if I'm wrong please let me know so I can correct it. I thought I'd make an educated guess that it was too the name of an apostle.**

**Next chapter is back to the case, I'm emotionally wrung out after writing this one!**


	34. Chapter 34

Chapter 34 - Weakness

As they got out of the elevator the next morning Jane said brightly, 'So once more into the breach, eh?'

Lisbon nodded, agent mode fully back in control again. 'Let's get this damn case wrapped up already, shall we?'

They met Abbott who called them into a team briefing, checking with them first to make sure they would be able to continue on the case. He didn't normally like agents being involved in personal cases like this but knew that without their insight into this one he may never get the full story.

Jane said 'We're good, let's get to it, Dennis.'

Fischer informed them that there were still prescription pads at the house and were able to track a prescription written for the drug in question about a month ago. It looked like Eva Myles' handwriting, proof that she was implicated in Kerry's murder.

Jane nodded. 'Good, so where does that leave us?'

Fischer replied 'Well that should be enough to convict Eva on aiding and abetting at the very least. We also have her on attempted murder and being an accomplice to McAllister, although that's not as conclusive as I don't know if the AG will want to prosecute as it means opening up the whole Blake Association investigation again. Even on the aiding and abetting charge alone though we should get long enough to make sure she never sees the light of day again. We've checked her medical files and she has terminal cancer, she'll be lucky to live another six months in any case. What we really need is a motive from Julia, without it we've just got her confession and they can be shaky to get a conviction on never mind the fact she may retract it once she's spoken to a lawyer.'

Lisbon answered 'Thank god we don't have to talk to the mother again.'

Jane nodded. 'Okay, so let's get Julia back in here so we can get it.'

They broke up and Lisbon went to her desk.

Jane waited for her to get engrossed in something on her screen before he slipped away and headed down to the holding cells to see Eva Myles.

'Comfy enough for you?' he asked through the bars.

Eva smiled back at him. 'What an honour Mr Jane. Are you here to threaten my life after upsetting poor Teresa yesterday? There's really no point, I'll be dead soon enough.'

Jane nodded. 'I know and it gives me great pleasure that that's the case. Certainly saves me the bother.'

'So why are you here then? Do you want to know what Tom told me the night he killed Angela and Charlotte?'

Jane's expression turned icy and he was relieved the bars were between them as he wouldn't have been able to stop himself from reaching for her if they weren't.

Jane shook his head. 'No, I think I've heard more than enough bullshit from you as it is.' The last he wanted to hear was how much joy it gave them both, he had played enough mind games with McAllister and wasn't willing for this woman to begin torturing him too.

Eva looked mildly surprised. 'So?'

Jane composed himself again, pacing in front of the cell. 'I just wanted to tell you something actually before you shuffle off this mortal coil. You thought of him as a fearless and powerful man, didn't you? Some type of heroic figure who pulled you out of a life of drudgery and boredom with your husband, someone who gave you what you needed. You were too much of a wimp to do any of the killing yourself, you got your thrills by him describing the kills to you instead; you're much more of a voyeur than a killer. You tried that day, though, I'll give you that, just failed and because of that I killed him. Do you feel guilty about that? The man you adored was relying on you and you failed him. Pretty pathetic really, I'm hardly the strongest man and you even had the element of surprise.'

Jane stopped pacing and came face to face with her through the bars. 'Did you know he begged me for his life before I took it from him? Begged me for mercy?' he said staring into her eyes, enjoying the look of surprise in them.

He added, 'You think I'm lying? Trying to score a point after yesterday? You know I'm telling the truth. You wasted your life and now your daughter is going to waste hers too on someone who was weak and a coward at heart. You really think he didn't manipulate you into believing he was something other than that?'

Eva looked away, shaken for the first time since he had met her.

* * *

When Jane returned Lisbon looked up. 'Where did you take yourself off to?'

Jane shrugged and smiled back 'Why, did you miss me?'

Lisbon titled her head and raised her eyebrows questioningly.

Jane shrugged again. 'Don't fret, I didn't get myself into any trouble' he replied, before sitting down on the couch.

Lisbon turned back to her screen shaking her head. 'Julia and her lawyer are waiting for us in interrogation, are you ready to go?'

Jane got up again, scanning the Christmas photo of the Myles' family sitting on Lisbon's desk. 'Yip, let's go.'

* * *

Julia and her lawyer sat at the table as Jane and Lisbon came into the room. The lawyer introduced himself as Walker, a middle aged man with dyed hair and thin glasses. The lawyer spoke first. 'Miss Myles has told me of your threat to her mother's life, Mr Jane. Let me be clear that if there is another implied threat to my client or her mother then you will have a lawsuit on your hands and I will see to it that this charge is dropped.'

Jane sat across from him, his eyes widening and a grin fell across his face. 'Very good counsellor, great opening statement, you may want to use a little more conviction when you're in court though, you lost a little confidence towards the end there.'

Lisbon rolled her eyes as Walker replied, 'Mr Jane, you are not taking this seriously!'

Jane shrugged. 'Oh, counsellor, you have no idea how seriously I'm taking this. So enough of the grandstanding, eh? Your client has confessed to murder without any duress or threats from me, as much as I was tempted to make them. As for her mother, well she's about to drop dead any time now so there would no point in threatening her, would there?'

Jane turned to Julia. 'I'm guessing that's why you didn't confess after I talked of your mother before, eh Julia, you knew she was terminally ill anyway.'

Before Walker or Julia had time to respond he turned his attention back to Walker. 'You want to take me on in court? Go ahead, I promise to make you look as dumb as that choice of hair dye. Black, really? You think the secretary you're trying to impress doesn't know you're fifty already?' The lawyer's mouth was wide open in disbelief as Lisbon sat beside him hiding a smirk.

Jane continued 'So, the only way you or your client are going to get me going easy on you or her from the witness stand is for her to tell us why she killed Kerry Matthews.'

He looked at Julia now. 'You know you want to tell us Julia, I can see it in your eyes, your frustration that we haven't figured this out ourselves? Go on, tell us, and prove to us how clever you are.' Jane finally sat back, his hands crossed behind his head.

Walker gathered himself. 'Mr Jane, stop badgering my client-'

Julia placed her hand on his arm and interrupted him. 'Mr Walker, thank you for representing me but I want to speak to Mr Jane and Agent Lisbon alone.'

Walker looked perplexed. 'I'm your lawyer, Julia, I need to protect you from-'

'You're fired, all right, now get out!' she shouted.

Walker, still confused, gathered his papers. 'Fine, it'll be your funeral' he mumbled as he left the room.

Jane turned his head to her. 'That's the first good decision you've made. Now we're alone why don't you get started?'

Julia composed herself and began to speak.


	35. Chapter 35

**A/N: Apologies for being a little more tardy than usual in my updating, a mini heat wave here in Ireland has meant I haven't spent too much time at my computer. I know I promised some of the reviewers that all would be revealed here but there's a little more next chapter before I finish off with some fluffy stuff. **

Chapter 35 - Motive

'I want to begin by telling you that I knew Thomas McAllister my whole life. He used to come to the house and play with me, be it a game of cards, a board game or to take me fishing as I got older. When the notion took him he had what you might call a magnetic personality I guess, you couldn't help but be drawn to him. Sometimes he acted differently, of course, more distant and darker perhaps but I learned when he was in those moods to not bother him. I'm not trying to offend you Mr Jane but you know you have the same traits in your personality too, you two are, _were_, more alike than you'd care to admit.'

Jane shifted in his chair a little. 'Yeah, I've been told that before. When did you find out he was Red John?'

Julia continued, sighing a little, the guard she had so valiantly tried to keep up over the last few days now disappeared, 'Not until after you killed him, my mother told me then.'

Lisbon asked 'How did that make you feel?'

Julia shrugged. 'I'm not sure really. To be honest I wasn't entirely surprised. He taught me how to set traps for animals when I was young. The first time I caught a rabbit I tried to act that I was sorry it was dead but he could see the joy I felt when I touched its lifeless body. He told me not to feel sympathy for the animal and that it was stupid enough to get into the trap in the first place. He said that I should take pride in what I had done instead, that I should allow myself to fully explore the happiness it gave me. After that he began to talk to me more about feelings like that. He must have spoken to my mother and she began to encourage me too. The first time I killed and skinned a deer she was there, she was so proud of me.' Julia's eyes misted over as she recounted the story.

Jane listened intently. It sounded like this woman had obviously always had a tendency to be a murderer but perhaps in a different family situation the propensity could have been diminished instead of amplified. Despite what she had done, it was difficult for him not to feel a little sorry for her. Killing those animals back then was her way of getting attention and love from a mother who most probably never felt it for her in the first place.

Lisbon asked 'Your mother was the one who told you about us?'

Julia nodded. 'Yes, after he died she told me about everything he did and your part in trying to catch him. They had obviously discussed you both in great detail. I wanted to know more about the people who caught him so I found out about your childhoods, backgrounds and how he had outsmarted you both time and time again. My mother also gave me a flash drive that he had kept at our house with all those details, I think it was a kind of diary for them both.'

Lisbon asked 'Do you still have it?'

'No, after I read the information I destroyed it.'

Jane asked 'Why?'

'Dunno really, guess I didn't want to be caught with it on me.'

Jane watched her curiously, he could tell that the drive had been destroyed but there was another reason behind its destruction.

Jane asked 'When it came to college, it was your mother's idea you come here, wasn't it?'

'Yes, she had told me about the criminology course here and wanted me to attend it. She was interested in finding out what they were teaching about him.'

Jane nodded as Lisbon asked 'Did you know we lived in Austin too?'

Julia shook her head. 'Not at that stage, no. I only found out when Professor Vance mentioned your indictment in class about a month ago. I told my mother then but I think now that she already knew that. I think that was part of the reason she wanted me here too.'

Jane said 'Why do you think she didn't divulge that to you?'

Julia shrugged.

Lisbon asked, getting impatient, 'So, what was it about Kerry that made you want to kill her? You intimated before that it had something to do with McAllister never harming me. So, what was it exactly? Some type of retribution for my actions in McAllister's murder?'

'I want to begin by telling you that Kerry was the first person I ever killed. I'm sure it has crossed your minds that I may have done this before but I haven't. I'm not saying I wasn't capable of doing it long before now but Kerry was the first person I met who gave me the opportunity to fulfil that desire. I didn't want to waste my first kill on someone inconsequential, what would be the point of that? I wanted it to be something special for me to hang on to, to choose someone of importance to me.'

Jane sighed. 'What was so important about her, it has to be more than just the fact that her background would have reminded you of what you had heard and read about Lisbon's here?'

'Of course it was more than that. When I first met Kerry I actually quite liked her. Well, maybe _like_ is the wrong choice of word. She amused me, I guess. She was so direct and didn't take any prisoners when it came to class, coursework or guys who used to hit on her. I was quieter and she used try to include me in study groups and the like. In a way, I really came out of my shell because of her.'

Lisbon said 'Sounds like she was a good friend to you, why on earth would you want to kill her?'

Jane answered before Julia had a chance. 'That's partially why, right Julia? She was getting close to you and you've been taught your whole life not to let that happen, not to let anyone in here' he said, pointing to his heart. He continued 'It scared you, didn't it? Believe me, I know the feeling.'

Lisbon glanced at the table, the parallel with what she knew about Jane's childhood and history not lost on her.

Jane asked 'You had told your mother about her. So she encouraged you to do the only thing you could to stop her from getting closer, was that it?'

Julia shook her head, strength back in her voice, 'Let me be straight, I was never afraid of letting her in. If anything, I was angry she thought of me as some type of lost soul that needed befriending. How dare she look at me like that?'

Jane shook his head. 'I doubt that's entirely true, Julia. In truth, you were conflicted, you had been raised to behave and believe in one philosophy and this person was making you question that, make you wonder if you could perhaps change the path you were on and have a different type of life.'

Julia smirked at him. 'We're not all as weak as you Mr Jane. We're not all that easily swayed to begin relying on someone else to make our own lives more fulfilling.' She tilted her head towards Lisbon.

After a few moments, Jane said, 'You said the reason you killed Kerry Matthews was because McAllister didn't kill Lisbon. I often wondered over the years why he didn't but I figured it out and I guess you have too. He threatened it and even came close a couple of times but we both know what would have happened if he had, especially as the years rolled on. Sure he would have won the game with me but he would also have lost his favourite plaything in the process. He knew the devastation I would feel if he took her away from me, that losing her would have finished me off entirely. He knew very well that I wouldn't be able to cope without her.'

Lisbon's heart swelled hearing the words, using all of her willpower to fight off the tears welling up inside of her. It was ironic that the closeness the two of them had formed over the years had perhaps saved her life in the end.

Jane continued 'With Kerry, she had a similar affect on you that Lisbon had on me, you began to feel quickly what it perhaps took me years to recognise, the bond with another person, a person who made your days go quicker and easier, a person who began to make you doubt who you really were inside-'

Julia interrupted him angrily. 'A person who would make you weak, hesitant, cautious, less capable of being that person inside. I agree that you would have crumpled in the later years Mr Jane so he should have done it much sooner, before you felt such an attachment to her.' Julia's gaze shifted to Lisbon, a hard look on her face.

Lisbon glanced back, saying nothing and smiled thinly at her, knowing that would annoy her more than a retort.

Jane sighed, looking around the room. 'Guess that explains why you did what you did, cut off the attachment you were beginning to feel with Kerry before it became too strong. Why did you strangle her? Why that method?'

'That's simple. I wanted to understand what you felt, wanted to experience the thrill of it, part of me even wanted to imagine it was him lying there too. I resented him for not killing you both sooner. Mr Jane you were his weakness like Agent Lisbon is yours so I wanted to do what he could not bring himself to, to take someone's life I cared about, to prove that I was stronger than him.'

Julia continued, 'You see, I wasn't prepared to become like you Mr Jane. Someone with so much potential who has become so...ordinary...now. I see the way you look at her, it's pathetic.'

Lisbon watched the entire exchange without a word. As she glanced over at Jane, he smiled at her. 'Well, Julia, I'll take ordinary any time if this is what it feels like.'

Julia glared at them, anger at boiling point.

Jane then added, 'Thank you for the explanation, Julia, but there's one more thing you haven't mentioned in all this, isn't there? Why don't you finish by admitting the truth about that now?'


	36. Chapter 36

Chapter 36 – Case Closed

Lisbon glanced over at Jane, surprised, then to Julia who was obviously mulling something over in her mind.

Jane filled the silence. 'You think I'm tricking you somehow into revealing something I don't already know? It's taken me a while to piece it together but I'm pretty sure I'm right, especially seeing your face now.'

Julia stared back at him. 'You think you're so clever, tell me what you think I'm withholding.'

Jane nodded and sighed. 'Thomas McAllister was not just your mother's lover. He was your father too, wasn't he?'

Lisbon jerked her head again to Jane, utter disbelief on her face.

Jane's eyes remained on Julia as she answered him, 'Well, maybe there is still hope for you after all, your mind hasn't entirely gone to seed just yet. When did you figure it out?'

'Oh, it took me a while actually. There were many signs though, like how easily you fooled me, there aren't many people I can't read and you were undoubtedly one of the best I'd ever come across. But it really started to fit into place when I saw a holiday photograph of you, your mother and Jason. You don't look like your father or mother at all, do you, so I began to wonder some more. Then, you defended McAllister but didn't seem to give a damn about what we thought of Jason. I was naturally also wondering what made your mother different to all his other women, I had first thought that it was because they were some type of kindred spirits but it was more than that I finally realised, the difference was you. She had given him a daughter, a protégée I suppose. Someone he could begin to mould as a child, I imagine that was enthralling for him. Then, just now, you told us you were angry with him, you told us it was because he should have killed us sooner and maybe there's some truth in that but the real reason I think is because he abandoned you.'

Julia's eyes glazed over and she replied angrily, 'He never even told me himself, just let me believe Jason was my father all those years!'

Lisbon had finally recovered from the shock she first experienced and asked, 'When you told us before that your mother told you he was Red John after he was dead, she told you then that he was also your father?'

'Yes. By then my fath...Jason was going downhill fast and she had been diagnosed with cancer so she wanted me to know before she got ill so I could finally realise the person I was. If he had only told me himself I could have helped him the day you killed him. My mother shouldn't have been there, I should have been instead.'

Jane sighed and looked at Lisbon before looking back at Julia. 'The flash drive you were given, there were other details on it about this I guess.'

'Yes, he had made some videos for me to watch, to inspire me I suppose.'

Lisbon asked 'Why did you destroy it?'

'After he lied to me like that, you really think I was going to take his advice? I didn't need it by then. He wanted me to start up the whole gutting of people and smiley face thing again if he died. I wanted my kills to have more importance; I wasn't going to make kneejerk reactions like he had. But because he had helped conceive me I placed the paper with the face on it in Kerry's mouth, that was the only tribute I was going to pay to him. I thought strangulation would be my method instead, a final way of getting back at him, I guess.' She laughed faintly as she spoke the last words.

* * *

A short while later, Abbott, who was watching from the observation room, came in to draw up the formal charges. Jane and Lisbon left the room and walked to the break area in silence. As Jane sniffed his tea Lisbon sipped her coffee thoughtfully. 'She didn't stand a chance did she? With parents like that? I know what she did was truly awful but the whole thing just makes me incredibly sad.'

Jane nodded and embaced her, sighing 'Yeah, but she still chose the path to take in the end, she could have taken another.'

* * *

As they arrived home with Chinese later on Lisbon went to take a quick shower while Jane warmed the plates up. He couldn't help but think of Julia, a child born into the wrong family and how different her life could have been if she had been raised differently or if she had embraced the friendship Kerry offered instead of extinguishing it. Lisbon was right, it was incredibly sad. He was staring out the window when he felt two hands snake around his waist. He turned around and Lisbon said 'I guess I don't need to ask for a penny for them, do I?'

Jane shook his head, putting his arms around her and kissed her gently. He said 'I'm so glad I met you, you know you saved me, don't you? I always thought that it was searching for Red John that kept me going all those years but I don't think it was, or at least, it wasn't just that. It was all those other cases you made me work on, the belief you had in me, the friendship that we formed. That's what made me want to get up each day. I need you to know that, Teresa.'

Lisbon's eyes misted over. 'So I guess you're feeling a little melancholy tonight, eh? It wasn't a one way street you know, you know our friendship meant more to me back then than anything too. Why else would I have got so mad at you so often? Like you said once before, I was always meaner to you than the others because I liked you more.'

Jane smiled, kissing her lips again.

Lisbon asked uneasily, 'How does it feel, knowing he has a daughter?'

Jane shrugged. 'Dunno really. Okay I guess. She never harmed anyone I knew or loved. And she's going to have a sad pathetic life without any interference from me.'

'You know it's likely she'll end up in a psychiatric hospital, not prison?'

'Hard not to argue with that, she's hardly sane, is she?'

Lisbon nodded, wrapping her arms around him and listening to his heart beating gently. Jane stroked her hair. 'I spoke to Abbott by the way.'

Lisbon looked up at him 'About what?'

'About us taking a trip, remember we talked about it? You said we'd talk about it after the case. Well the case was over this afternoon so I asked him if we could have a long weekend off once he finished with Julia.'

'What did he say?' she smiled.

Jane smiled widely back. 'We go back to the Blue Bird next Friday through Sunday. Three days of frolicking await us' he said, winking at the end of the sentence.

Lisbon laughed. 'How on earth did you swing it with him?'

'Well, to be honest it was pretty easy, he almost recommended it before I even mentioned it. Think he's afraid of us both cracking up because of this case.'

'Well, he wasn't far wrong for a while there.'

Jane laughed. 'Well maybe we both had our moments this week but we make a formidable team so we got through them like we always do.'

Lisbon smiled up at him. 'Yes, we do make a good team sometimes'. She then added 'And you forgot _naked _by the way.'

**A/N: Thanks again to all of you who have continued to read and review my fanfic. For all your diligence a couple more chapters of pure fluff will finish the story off next.**


	37. Chapter 37

Chapter 37 – Blue Bird

As they got to the ticket counter in the airport, Jane's excitement was obvious to anyone looking in his direction. He couldn't stop smiling and his hands were permanently around Lisbon's waist in a pretty floral dress she had picked out for the plane. As she got her ticket she laughed and said to him 'Did you organise this?'

Jane looked down at the ticket; the boarding pass was for seat 12B. He laughed and replied 'No, it's just a happy coincidence. It's a good number for you, though.'

'And for you too I imagine' she said, laughing.

As they got seated on the plane, she glanced over at Jane sitting in the aisle seat. She had never seen him so relaxed, all the years of tension had somehow faded and he seemed content at last. Even after he came back from South America he had not looked so happy. She still found it incredible that it was she that had been able to bring peace like this to him.

He glanced back and said happily 'What are you staring at?'

She smiled, taking his hand. 'I like those chinos on you. I was glad I was able to talk you into wearing something other than a suit for a change for this trip.'

Jane smiled back. 'That's not what you were thinking but I agree, it's nice to be casual for a change, I like this shirt, it's very soft', he muttered, stroking the loose white shirt he wore.

When they were in the air, Lisbon read the airline's magazine as Jane's eyes glanced down at her cleavage, his eyes then moving to her bare knees. They had made love only that morning but he found his desire for her growing again. He was becoming a man obsessed and wondered how he had kept his hands off her for so long. She instilled an excitement in him that he had never felt before, even with Angela. Maybe he had been too innocent then, hadn't experienced the lows that perhaps made him appreciate the highs passion could bring. Or maybe, he thought with a tinge of guilt, Teresa was the person he was always meant to be with. He smiled as he looked at her. She still sometimes looked at him like he was the one she was lucky to be with instead of it being the other way around. She caught his glance and said 'Don't even think about it, you can wait until we get to the Blue Bird.'

He looked away smiling. Maybe she was beginning to realise the power she held over him now after all. He whispered to her, 'The bathroom's free', tilting his head to the front of the plane.

She put the magazine down and widened her eyes. 'No chance. Haven't you ever done it on a plane? It was truly the most uncomfortable experience of having sex in my life.'

Jane turned to her, surprised and said 'When was this?'

Lisbon smiled and flipped through her magazine casually. 'Whilst I was in the Academy. There was a training seminar in New York so me and this guy I was seeing at the time tried it.'

Meanwhile, Jane's eyes widened in disbelief at the revelation.

Lisbon glanced at him again and laughed 'Although, saying that, he was over six feet tall so the logistics were difficult at the best of times.'

Jane began to chuckle, the picture of a tiny Lisbon in the bathroom with this guy sounded hilarious.

He replied smiling, 'Did you muddle through in any case?'

'You know I'm a professional, I like to see a job through to the end, no matter how difficult', she said, smiling back at him.

She added, 'I'm surprised you never tried it, all those times you were all over the country doing your talk shows.'

'Well, no, I normally travelled alone so didn't really have the opportunity.'

'Aw, that was a shame, guess you'll never find out now', she replied, smiling sweetly.

He laughed again. 'Well, you know I'm a lot shorter than six feet, we could still give it a go.'

She laughed again and whispered, 'Don't worry. I'll make it up to you at the Blue Bird.'

* * *

When they reached the reception, the same woman who checked them in previously was standing there. Lisbon blushed when she realised she recognised them. The woman asked 'Mr Jane, how...nice to see you back again. Just one waterside suite this time?' her eyes flitting to Lisbon.

Jane beamed, putting his arm around Lisbon's waist. 'Most definitely.'

After confirming their dinner reservation the woman handed them their key. As they walked up the stairs Lisbon whispered, 'Well that was certainly embarrassing, she must wonder what the hell we're playing at.'

Jane chuckled 'Well, I'm sure it's not every day one guest throws a glass of water in another one's face and a short while later one of their rooms becomes a crime scene.'

As they walked into the room, Lisbon looked around appreciatively again like she had the first time she had entered a few weeks back. She wandered out to the balcony, breathing in the sea air. Jane's arms wrapped around her waist and he whispered 'Glad we finally made it back.'

After his frustration on the plane, she had thought that he would have began undressing her as soon as she walked into the room but realised he was in a more romantic mood so she whispered, turning around to him 'Why don't we get changed and go for a walk on the beach?'

They strolled across the beach, Lisbon changed into a strappy top and a pair of shorts and Jane in a light turquoise shirt and a pair of knee length shorts. They walked hand in hand and Lisbon couldn't remember ever being this happy. Jane beamed at her, the sun reflecting off his blond curls and she couldn't help but feel giddy by the sight of him.

When they got back to the room, the tiredness from the flight and the walk took hold of them and they both undressed to get a nap before dinner. However, the sight of each others bodies made them fight off sleep for a little longer as they made love on the bed, slowly and tenderly before falling into blissful dreams.

* * *

As they got dressed for dinner Lisbon put on the green dress Jane had bought for her. 'Beautiful' he said, as he zipped it up on her, his hand, moving slowly so he could feel the bare skin on his knuckles, kissing her neck gently.

As she turned around he eyed her curiously.

'What is it?' Lisbon asked.

Jane sighed, looking at her inquisitively and said 'Not sure, I think there's something missing from the ensemble.'

Lisbon looked down and was about to tell him off for questioning her dress sense when he put his hand behind her ear and pulled out a small box.

She eyed it suspiciously as Jane read her expression. After a moment he said 'Don't fret, it's not a ring, not yet' before moving it around in his hands and opening it to reveal a pair of small emerald earrings.

'Jane, they're beautiful, you didn't need to do that. They better not be expensive.'

Jane smiled. Angela used to love it when he bought her extravagant jewellery but Lisbon was different, he knew she would have made him return them if they were too expensive. 'They're not, I promise, mid range at best, okay?'

Lisbon grinned, putting them on and looking at them in the mirror.

Jane took the moment to drop the other box containing an engagement ring he had held out at first to her into his bag. He had wondered if a proposal was going too fast for her this early on and was glad he had decided to buy the earrings to swap out for just such a scenario. Upon gauging her reaction to the sight of the box, he saw fright and apprehension in her eyes at the mere thought of a proposal so he knew it wasn't time for her to take that step just yet. He was a little disappointed naturally but patience, at least, was one of his attributes, she had waited so long for him to be ready he could hardly complain.

He opened the door for her, kissing her cheek as they both went down to dinner.

**A/N: Last chapter up next!**


	38. Chapter 38

Chapter 38 – The Plan & The Past

Dinner was as good as Jane had imagined and they sat in the restaurant holding hands every chance they got.

Lisbon mused 'You make me feel like the most beautiful woman in the world, you know, the way you look at me sometimes.'

'Well you are to me. I especially like how it unnerves you, I adore making you blush.'

Lisbon giggled. 'Yeah, I've noticed over the years. So, Romeo, are you going to fill me in on what your plan was the last time we were here?'

Jane looked a little sheepish and glanced away for a second before he answered her 'You won't be impressed.'

'Am I ever impressed by one of your plans? Come on, out with it.'

Jane grinned. 'Right here at the table Lisbon? Can't you wait until we get back to the room at least? You really are insatiable, woman.'

Lisbon laughed. 'Stop trying to change the subject, tell me.'

Jane exhaled and leaned back in his chair then nodded. 'Well, Cho and Abbott were not supposed to be at dinner for a start, it was just supposed to be just us two.'

Lisbon nodded. 'I figured out that much myself. So, the two of us are at dinner together, then what?'

'Well, we had had a nice couple of days here, right? It was fun and you were relaxed. When you came down the stairs you looked...well you looked almost as beautiful as you look tonight.'

'Enough of the compliments, stop stalling.'

Jane smiled, conceding the point and continued. 'Well I planned on telling you how much I was going to miss you, reminisce with you about previous cases we worked on, tell you that it wasn't going to be the same for me without you in Austin.'

'So you were planning on trying to guilt trip me into staying? You had already tried that, it wasn't working.'

'Mmm, I know. Well that was plan A. See if I could change your mind by saying those things in a different setting. I was hoping perhaps the nice food and the attentiveness I showed you might be enough for you to have second thoughts. But I had already prepared myself that I would probably have to move on to plan B.'

'Plan B. So, what was that, your plan to seduce me instead? I mean the dresses, dinner, adjoining rooms, that's what it was all leading to, right?'

Jane shifted a little in his seat. 'I don't know if I would call it seduction per se, it was more of a way of charming you into staying I suppose. Anyway, after dinner you would have to come back to my room-'

Lisbon looked surprised. 'Would I?'

Jane nodded. 'If you remember we were expecting the murderer to show up there so a trained FBI agent would have to protect me, naturally.'

'Of course, couldn't leave you all alone, could I?'

'Well, I figured it wouldn't take too long for him or her to arrive, I was pretty right about the timing actually. So I guessed a couple of hours to process so that would get you finished about midnight at the latest.'

'So what then?'

'Well, I would be in my room of course waiting for you to finish up. When I heard your door close I was going to wait a half hour or so until you got settled in bed before I rang your room.'

'Okay.'

Jane continued 'Well, I was going to ask how the processing went, what they would be charged with, all that type of stuff.'

'You mean all the stuff you really didn't give a damn about.'

Jane smiled and nodded before continuing, 'Well I had to use some of sort of pretence to call. So then I would tell you that it was full moon and ask you to join me on my balcony to look at it, have a nightcap together for old time's sake before we went our separate ways in the morning.'

'You couldn't have known I would have come to you.'

Jane smiled and caressed her face. 'Of course you would. I saw it in your face as you came down the stairs that evening; it was more than just a dinner between two old friends. You were hoping I would make a move on you or a declaration of some sort at least.'

Lisbon blushed a little. 'So okay, I've come to your room and we're having a nightcap together, what then?'

Jane shrugged. 'I was going to tell you again how much I was going to miss you, how much our friendship meant to me over the years and that I hoped Pike was going to make you happy.'

Lisbon looked surprised. 'Really?'

Jane nodded. 'I was going to finish by looking into your eyes, maybe caress your cheek and then give you a chaste peck on the lips.'

'That was it?'

Jane nodded. 'I hoped even by doing that you would realise that he wasn't the man for you. It was pretty arrogant to think that's all it would have taken but there you go. I hoped that it would instil a reaction in you instead without me having to give any more of myself away.'

Lisbon thought for a second. 'You were hoping I would return the kiss?'

Jane nodded and answered with his eyebrows raised, 'Are you going to tell me you wouldn't have in that moment?'

Lisbon smiled. 'Most probably. She looked into his eyes and continued, 'Okay, most definitely. You know I wouldn't have been able to resist.'

Jane smiled. 'Well that was it really. The rest I was going to leave to you, see how far you wanted things to go.'

'I think we both know how far it would have gone, we wouldn't have been able to stop at just a few kisses.'

Jane blushed. 'Probably not. In any respect, whatever happened I was confident it would be enough for you to change your mind about D.C.' He looked a little embarrassed and added, 'I knew it would be enough for you to hope there was a future for us instead.'

Lisbon regarded him. 'You still weren't going to tell me you loved me. You were intending for us to go back to Austin where you would have probably put it down us losing our heads for a little while in a romantic setting and for us to go back to how it was between us before instead.'

Jane shrugged. 'Pretty cowardly, huh? There was a major flaw in my plan, though.'

Lisbon eyed him sceptically 'There was?'

Jane nodded, taking her hand. 'Well, I didn't realise it then but now I know that be it one kiss or one night with you would only make me want another, again and again, every day and every night.'

* * *

They lay in bed that night, listening to the waves gently lapping outside their window, their naked bodies entangled around each other, beads of sweat glistening in the dim light of the moon streaking across the room.

Lisbon asked, her fingers dancing across Jane's chest, 'When did you know that you loved me? You said that it was good to finally say it out loud. How long did you realise before then?'

Jane sighed contentedly, almost asleep from Lisbon's gentle touch. He murmured 'That's a hard question. To be honest, I'm not sure. I always thought you were cute, I may have been heartbroken but I'm not gay. But I think I really started to have different feelings for you around the time of the McTeer case'.

Lisbon looked up, leaning on his chest. 'The child rapist? But that was what, about ten years ago? There's no way you've felt like this about me since then.'

Jane chuckled, his eyes still closed. 'Well, I didn't say I felt like this about you back then. I said that I began to have different feelings about you.'

'He opened his eyes to look down at her and added, 'You let me see a vulnerable side to you for a change, let me see a little bit of the Teresa I had only imagined and perhaps had a glimpse of before then. How could I not find that attractive? Plus, when you were in your apartment that night wearing that football jersey, well, let's just say it wasn't just us getting the psychiatrist to confess that night that made me happy.' He began to laugh towards the end of the sentence.

Lisbon smiled back. 'So when did it become more than mere lustful thoughts?'

'It's hard to say really. I think it may have been when you punched Donny Culpepper in the face, hard as that may be to believe. You have no idea of what I had tried to do to get him out of jail and you just came in, took over and sorted it out. It made me realise finally that I couldn't keep everything to myself, that I needed to trust you and that I could trust you. But I think I finally knew I loved you when O'Loughlin shot you. I sat frozen on the other end of the phone, I could hardly breathe.' Jane stroked Lisbon's cheek, remembering the terror he had felt.

Lisbon snuggled back down into his chest as he asked 'Do you want to know when I knew for sure how much you loved me?'

'Well, that can't be too tough for you, I'm an open book, right? I'm sure you knew I had the hots for you for years.'

Jane chuckled a little, tracing circles into Lisbon's back. 'Well, yes, I knew you found me attractive naturally for a long time. I mean, I'm a fine specimen, who wouldn't?' he laughed.

Lisbon giggled a little. 'So go on, then. You obviously want to tell me something.'

'Remember the day I got acquitted of Timothy Carter's murder?'

'Of course I do.'

'Well, you were waiting for me outside the courtroom that day. You were smiling and obviously relieved I'd got away with it. But you thought that Red John was dead, right? And before you got into the car you gave me a look of...I'm not sure how to describe it actually. It was like a mixture of happiness, anticipation, excitement and desire.'

Lisbon answered 'You got all that from just one look?'

Jane nodded. 'Well, I guess that's when I knew for sure. Or, at least, that's when I allowed myself to know for sure.' He paused for a second and swallowed a lump in his throat. He said softly 'You know I almost gave into it that day, the idea of being with you.'

Lisbon's head jerked back up. 'What? Then? But Red John wasn't dead?'

'I know but you didn't know that. For a few minutes I thought about not telling you. Letting you believe that he was dead. I even fantasised for a few minutes about convincing myself that I had killed him. Fantasised about going to your apartment that night and holding you and giving myself to you, finally letting you know how I felt about you and allowing myself to be loved again. I imagined the softness of your skin against mine, your arms around me and how sweet and tender our kisses would be...' Jane's voice trailed off, his eyes looking in the distance.

Lisbon answered 'I'm glad it didn't happen like that.'

Jane looked at her again. 'Really? If I could have convinced myself that it was him then we could have had all this years ago, you wouldn't have wanted that?'

Lisbon shook her head. 'Well, there's no way you could have convinced yourself of that for long. And until then we would have started up something based on a lie. Then, when you did finally tell me the truth it would have hurt me twice as much.'

'Well, you finally know the truth of how I feel now, that's for sure.'

'Yes and I love you for telling me at last, no matter how long it actually took you.'

Jane grinned. 'At last, I thought you were never going to tell me you loved me.'

Lisbon looked at him, confusion all over her face. 'What do you mean? I've told you that before now, I must have.'

Jane shook his head. 'Nope. You've told me that you feel the same way about me when I've said it to you, or you've said 'me too' or 'I know'. By the way, I really don't care for 'I know'.'

Lisbon bit her lip and smiled. 'Well, in any case, since when do I need to tell you anything, you know what I'm thinking before I do sometimes!'

'Well, it's still nice to hear the words.'

He paused for a second as they looked into each other's eyes and then added, 'Say it again.'

Lisbon's eyes lit up and she was transported back to the TSA holding cell a few weeks back. She tilted her head coyly and replied, 'Say what again?' before moving forward enveloping Jane in a long lingering kiss.

- THE END –

**A/N: I would just like to say a massive thank you to all the readers of my story and especially to all those who have taken the time to post reviews. I am truly overwhelmed by the response and don't think I would have managed to complete this without all your kind words.**

**Now that I have the fanfic bug I have began writing a new Mentalist story as a follow up to this one. It's titled Consequences of Fear and is set around three months after this one (it is a sequel I guess but you don't need to have read this story first, I'm intending it to be able to stand on its own). It is pretty much all Jisbon but Cho, Abbott, Rigsby, Van Pelt and a couple of new characters will feature too. There will be no (or very little) mention of RJ and very little case work either. If you've read this one then you know I like to take these two on an emotional rollercoaster so that will be its main focus. Hope you take the time to read enjoy.**


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